ScienceDaily Technology Headlines
for Friday, December 25, 2009
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Keck telescopes gaze into young star's 'life zone' (December 25, 2009) -- The inner regions of young planet-forming disks offer information about how worlds like Earth form, but not a single telescope in the world can see them. Yet, for the first time, astronomers using the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii have measured the properties of a young solar system at distances closer to the star than Venus is from our sun. ... > full story
Wii Fit may not help families get fit (December 25, 2009) -- The Nintendo Wii Fit many people are considering as Christmas gifts may be great entertainment, but a new study indicates the console has little effect on family fitness. ... > full story
Santa’s sleigh: Researcher explains science of Christmas magic (December 24, 2009) -- Santa skeptics have long considered St. Nick's ability to deliver toys to the world's good girls and boys on Christmas Eve a scientific impossibility. But new research shows that Santa is able to make his appointed rounds through the pioneering use of cutting-edge science and technology. ... > full story
Cassini Holiday Movies Showcase Dance of Saturn's Moons (December 24, 2009) -- Like sugar plum fairies in "The Nutcracker," the moons of Saturn performed a celestial ballet before the eyes of NASA's Cassini spacecraft. New movies frame the moons' silent dance against the majestic sweep of the planet's rings and show as many as four moons gliding around one another. ... > full story
Herschel Space Telescope uncovers sources of cosmic infrared background (December 24, 2009) -- A weak cosmic infrared radiation field that reaches Earth from all directions contains not yet deciphered messages about the evolution of galaxies. Using first observations with the PACS Instrument on board ESA’s Herschel Space Telescope, scientists have for the first time resolved more than half of this radiation into its constituting sources. Observations with Herschel open the road towards understanding the properties of these galaxies, and trace the dusty side of galaxy evolution. ... > full story
Santa Claus at risk? Unhealthy lifestyle, unreasonable working conditions, and stress (December 24, 2009) -- An unhealthy lifestyle, unreasonable working conditions, and then the stress of having to deliver 152 million Christmas gifts in 24 hours. The extreme accomplishments of Santa Claus are making researchers in Sweden doubt his very existence. ... > full story
World's first molecular transistor created (December 24, 2009) -- Scientists have succeeded in creating the first transistor made from a single molecule. They showed that a benzene molecule attached to gold contacts could behave just like a silicon transistor. ... > full story
How do you improve mammogram accuracy? Add noise (December 24, 2009) -- Researchers have shown that an obscure phenomenon called stochastic resonance can improve the clarity of signals in systems such as radar, sonar and even radiography, used in medical clinics to detect signs of breast cancer. ... > full story
Youthful appearance of stars known as blue stragglers explained (December 24, 2009) -- For almost 50 years, astronomers have puzzled over the youthful appearance of stars known as blue stragglers. ... > full story
Chemical energy influences tiny vibrations of red blood cell membranes (December 24, 2009) -- Much like a tightly wound drum, red blood cells are in perpetual vibration. Those vibrations help the cells maintain their characteristic flattened oval or disc shape, which is critical to their ability to deform as they traverse blood vessels in the body to deliver oxygen to tissues. ... > full story
SPARKy devices helps amputees return to normal lives (December 23, 2009) -- Researchers have developed a prosthetic device that literally puts the spring back into an amputee's step. The scientists have developed and refined SPARKy (for spring ankle with regenerative kinetics) into a smart, active and energy storing below-the-knee (transbitial) prosthesis. ... > full story
System developed to detect plastic anti-personnel mines (December 23, 2009) -- A team of European researchers has devised a method for locating plastic anti-personnel mines, which are manufactured to avoid detection by metal detectors. The technique involves analyzing the temperature of the ground in three dimensions using specific software and hardware. ... > full story
Glitter-sized solar photovoltaics could revolutionize the way solar energy is collected and used (December 23, 2009) -- Scientists have developed tiny glitter-sized photovoltaic cells that could revolutionize the way solar energy is collected and used. ... > full story
Scientists improve chip memory by stacking cells (December 23, 2009) -- Scientists have developed an elegant method for significantly improving the memory capacity of electronic chips. The researchers have shown that they can build stackable memory based on "ionic memory technology," which could make them ideal candidates for storage cells in high-density memory. Best of all, the new method uses well-known electronics materials. ... > full story
Brown dwarf pair mystifies astronomers (December 23, 2009) -- Two brown dwarf-sized objects orbiting a giant old star show that planets may assemble around stars more quickly and efficiently than anyone thought possible, according to an international team of astronomers. ... > full story
Chemistry makes the natural 'wonder fabric' -- wool -- more wonderful (December 23, 2009) -- Scientists in China are reporting an advance that may improve the natural wonders of wool -- already regarded as the "wonder fabric" for its lightness, softness, warmth even when wet, and other qualities. They say the discovery could give wool a "brain," placing it among other "smart" fabrics that shake off wrinkles, shrinkage and "breathe" to release perspiration. ... > full story
New-generation reactors help reduce nuclear waste (December 23, 2009) -- Advanced technologies offer ways of reducing the quantity of nuclear waste. “New types of nuclear power plants can switch to a closed fuel cycle. It means that nuclear waste wouldn’t be buried as such; instead, it would be chemically dissolved and the recyclable component re-processed into new fuel. As a result, many of the most long-lived radioactive substances could be used at new types of facilities,” says one of the researchers. ... > full story
List helps computers understand expressions with more than one meaning (December 23, 2009) -- List helps computers understand expressions with more than one meaning Computers might well be 'with it', but 'they haven't got a clue' about expressions. Dutch researcher Nicole has come up with a solution to this problem: she has prepared a list of unpredictable word combinations that might, for instance, have a literal as well as a metaphorical meaning. The structuring of this list is such that it can be used by many different computer systems. ... > full story
Gravity in Potsdam and a dignified Christmas tree ball (December 23, 2009) -- Exactly one hundred years ago the force of gravity was measured for the first time with such accuracy that this measured value was established as a reference value world-wide. ... > full story
Improved recipe for catalysts (December 23, 2009) -- Baking the perfect soufflé depends on timing, good ingredients and the right proportions. Exactly the same thing applies to catalysts - the materials that make a chemical reaction work faster or better. Researchers now know how to make a perfect catalyst, thanks to new techniques. ... > full story
Electronic health records: Concerns about potential privacy breaches remain an issue (December 22, 2009) -- New research studies cite pervasive concern among US physicians about privacy issues related to electronic health records, despite recognized benefits of using them. ... > full story
Among apes, teeth are made for the toughest times (December 22, 2009) -- The teeth of some apes are formed primarily to handle the most stressful times when food is scarce, according to new research. The findings imply that if humanity is serious about protecting its close evolutionary cousins, the food apes eat during these tough periods -- and where they find it -- must be included in conservation efforts. ... > full story
Scientists shed light on a mysterious particle, the neutrino (December 22, 2009) -- Physicists have begun looking deep into the Earth to study some of nature's weirdest particles -- neutrinos. ... > full story
Discrimination in the citations that scientists use (December 22, 2009) -- Science does not have to be altruistic. In fact, most of the time it is egotistic, according to a study by researchers in Spain that analyzes the discrimination that exists in citations of scientific articles in articles where researchers publish their results. ... > full story
Next-generation lens promises wider view, greater detail (December 22, 2009) -- Engineers have created a new generation of lens that could greatly improve the capabilities of telecommunications or radar systems to provide a wide field of view and greater detail. ... > full story
Electronic nose can select produce with appealing aromas (December 22, 2009) -- The use of an electronic smelling system capable of discriminating which tomatoes, melons or other products have a more attractive aroma is a particularly valuable aid for agro-food firms. However, existing electronic noses do not “smell” in the same way depending on the laboratory conditions, and these conditions change throughout the day and from one day to another. ... > full story
Sensor can detect single nanoparticle and take its measurement (December 22, 2009) -- A tiny sensor that exploits the same physics as the whispering gallery will help make nanotechnology safer. ... > full story
What are the amounts of greenhouse gases released in your area and what are the sources? (December 22, 2009) -- The European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) has developed a high resolution digital view of artificial greenhouse gas emissions for any 10-by-10-kilometer area in the world. Using JRC's work on emissions and Google Earth, this new tool allows the visualization of the levels of emissions locally from 1970 to 2005 and the identification of the main sources. ... > full story
Physicists propose quantum entanglement for motion of microscopic objects (December 22, 2009) -- Researchers have proposed a new paradigm that should allow scientists to observe quantum behavior in small mechanical systems. Their ideas offer a new means of addressing one of the most fascinating issues in quantum mechanics: the nature of quantum superposition and entanglement in progressively larger and more complex systems. ... > full story
Little stars from the early galaxy: Understanding the Milky Way's oldest stellar population (December 22, 2009) -- A new object with an age of thousands of millions of years and a mass of one tenth of the Sun, placing it at the frontier between low-mass stars and brown dwarfs, has been discovered as the furthest of its class in Milky Way. Nicknamed ULAS1350, this subdwarf could become on of the key element to improve our knowledge on the first steps of the formation of our Galaxy. ... > full story
NASA Flight Tests Unique Jumbo Jet; Plane's Airborne Telescope Will Be Used to Unlock Secrets of the Cosmos (December 22, 2009) -- A NASA jumbo jet that will help scientists unlock the origins of the universe with infrared observations reached a milestone Dec. 18 when doors covering the plane's telescope were fully opened in flight. ... > full story
Mystery of golden ratio explained (December 21, 2009) -- The golden ratio is a geometric proportion that has been theorized to be the most aesthetically pleasing to the eye and has been the root of countless mysteries over the centuries. Now, an engineer has found it to be a compelling springboard to unify vision, thought and movement under a single law of nature's design. ... > full story
Quantum information: Disentangling a billion-dollar opportunity (December 21, 2009) -- The field of quantum information processing has come a long way in the past five years, partly thanks to new funding which has helped focus activity in this potentially lucrative field. Experts recently gathered to highlight the most recent advances and discuss what is now needed to make the most of the opportunities of quantum information processing. ... > full story
Supernova remnants reveal how the star exploded (December 21, 2009) -- A new study of images from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory on supernova remnants -- the debris from exploded stars -- shows that the symmetry of the remnants, or lack thereof, reveals how the star exploded. This is an important discovery because it shows that the remnants retain information about how the star exploded even though hundreds or thousands of years have passed. ... > full story
Predicting insurgent attacks with a mathematical model (December 21, 2009) -- Scientists have found a unified model of human insurgency that can estimate the timing and strength of insurgent attacks in present and future wars. ... > full story
Physicist sees through the opaque with 'T-rays' (December 21, 2009) -- "T-rays" may make X-rays obsolete as a means of detecting bombs on terrorists or illegal drugs on traffickers, among other uses, contends a physicist who is helping lay the theoretical groundwork to make the concept a reality. In addition to being more revealing than X-rays in some situations, T-rays do not have the cumulative possible harmful effects. ... > full story
Computer algorithm identifies authentic Van Gogh (December 21, 2009) -- A researcher in the Netherlands has developed computer algorithms to support art historians and other art experts in their visual assessment of paintings. His digital technology is capable of distinguishing a forgery from an authentic Van Gogh based on the painter's characteristic brush work and use of color. ... > full story
Black holes in star clusters stir up time and space (December 21, 2009) -- Within a decade scientists could be able to detect the merger of tens of pairs of black holes every year, according astronomers. By modeling the behavior of stars in clusters, the team finds that they are ideal environments for black holes to coalesce. These merger events produce ripples in time and space (gravitational waves) that could be detected by instruments from as early as 2015. ... > full story
Bioactive glass nanofibers produced (December 21, 2009) -- Researchers have developed "laser spinning," a novel method of producing glass nanofibres with materials. They have been able to manufacture bioglass nanofibres, the bioactive glass used in regenerating bone, for the first time. ... > full story
New filling, cooling and storage system may prevent bacterial growth and prolong shelf life of orange juice (December 21, 2009) -- Researchers in Brazil have estimated the growth timeline of a bacterium that causes orange juice spoilage during shelf life (approximately 6 months) and developed a safe and inexpensive filling, cooling, and storage protocol that inhibits bacterial growth and offers an alternative to other proposed treatments. ... > full story
Doctors' bedside skills trump medical technology (December 21, 2009) -- Sometimes, a simple bedside exam performed by a skilled physician is superior to a high-tech CT scan. A study has found that physicians' bedside exams did a better job than CT scans in predicting which patients would need to return to the operating room to treat serious complications. ... > full story
Fog discovered on Saturn's largest moon, Titan (December 20, 2009) -- Saturn's largest moon, Titan, looks to be the only place in the solar system -- aside from our home planet, Earth -- with copious quantities of liquid (largely, liquid methane and ethane) sitting on its surface. According to a planetary astronomer Earth and Titan share yet another feature, which is inextricably linked with that surface liquid: common fog. ... > full story
Colliding auroras produce an explosion of light (December 20, 2009) -- A network of cameras deployed around the Arctic in support of NASA's THEMIS mission has made a startling discovery about the Northern Lights. Sometimes, vast curtains of aurora borealis collide, producing spectacular outbursts of light. ... > full story
Hubble's festive view of a grand star-forming region (December 20, 2009) -- Just in time for the holidays: a Hubble Space Telescope picture postcard of hundreds of brilliant blue stars wreathed by warm, glowing clouds. The festive portrait is the most detailed view of the largest stellar nursery in our local galactic neighborhood. ... > full story
Hubble finds smallest Kuiper Belt object ever seen (December 19, 2009) -- NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has discovered the smallest object ever seen in visible light in the Kuiper Belt, a vast ring of icy debris that is encircling the outer rim of the solar system just beyond Neptune. ... > full story
Valuable, rare, raw earth materials extracted from industrial waste stream (December 19, 2009) -- Fierce competition over raw materials for new green technologies could become a thing of the past, thanks to a discovery by scientists in the UK. ... > full story
Why some insects can survive freezing: Huge X-ray microscope provides clues (December 19, 2009) -- Using a microscope the size of a football field, researchers are studying why some insects can survive freezing, while others cannot. Why is this important? Because the common fruit fly is one of the bugs that cannot survive freezing and the little creature just so happens to share much of the same genetic makeup as humans, therefore finding a way to freeze them for research purposes is a top priority for geneticists the world over. ... > full story
'Smart' nanocapsule delivery system created for use in protein therapy (December 19, 2009) -- Today protein therapy is considered the most direct and safe approach for treating diseases. However the effectiveness of this treatment has been limited by its low delivery efficiency and poor stability against proteases. Researchers have recently unveiled a new novel intracellular delivery platform based on nanocapsules consisting of a single-protein core and a thin permeable polymeric shell that can be engineered to either degrade or remain stable for different size substrates. ... > full story
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