ScienceDaily Technology Headlines
for Monday, May 24, 2010
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Two peas in an irregular pod: How binary stars may form (May 24, 2010) -- Our sun may be an only child, but most of the stars in the galaxy are actually twins. The sibling stars circle around each other at varying distances, bound by the hands of gravity. How twin stars form is an ongoing question in astronomy. Do they start out like fraternal twins developing from two separate clouds, or "eggs"? Or do they begin life in one cloud that splits into two, like identical twins born from one egg? ... > full story
Danger in the internet cafe? New computer security threat for wireless networks: Typhoid adware (May 24, 2010) -- There's a potential threat lurking in your internet café, say computer science researchers. It's called Typhoid adware and works in similar fashion to Typhoid Mary, the first identified healthy carrier of typhoid fever who spread the disease to dozens of people in the New York area in the early 1900s. ... > full story
Geometry Drives Selection Date for 2011 Mars Launch (May 24, 2010) -- Planners of NASA's next Mars mission have selected a flight schedule that will use favorable positions for two currently orbiting NASA Mars orbiters to obtain maximum information during descent and landing. ... > full story
Why do Earth’s storm tracks differ from those of Jupiter? (May 23, 2010) -- Computer simulations show that both ocean dynamics, such as the Gulf Stream, and mountain ranges influence the pattern of storm tracks on Earth. This also explains why Earth's storm tracks are so different from those on the gas giant Jupiter. ... > full story
Simple electronic gadget could speed up HIV/AIDS diagnostics (May 23, 2010) -- A relatively simple electronic gadget could speed up HIV/AIDS diagnostics and improve accuracy particularly in parts of the world with very limited access to health-care workers. ... > full story
Supramolecular architecture explains the incredible strength of fibrin blood clots (May 23, 2010) -- A new study unlocks the previously unknown structural features that underlie the incredible elastic resilience of fibrin, the main protein in blood clots. The research provides insight into how the molecular architecture of a fibrin network contributes to its resilience and may help to explain what causes the failure of a clot, which can lead to a stroke or heart attack. ... > full story
Synthetic biomaterials mimic cellular membranes: Use in nanomedicine, drug delivery (May 23, 2010) -- An international collaboration led by chemists and engineers has prepared a library of synthetic biomaterials that mimic cellular membranes and that show promise in targeted delivery of cancer drugs, gene therapy, proteins, imaging and diagnostic agents and cosmetics safely to the body in the emerging field called nanomedicine. ... > full story
Schooling fish offer new ideas for wind farming (May 23, 2010) -- The quest to derive energy from wind may soon be getting some help from a fluid-dynamics expert -- and a school of fish. ... > full story
Enabling video systems to react intelligently to content (May 23, 2010) -- Highly sophisticated video-content analysis now makes possible fast and reliable diagnosis of pulmonary embolisms, automatically detects threatening situations in surveillance scenarios and can provide more enjoyable and customized home entertainment. The systems achieve this by reacting not only to the contents of the data but also to the context. Commercial applications are already developing across Europe. ... > full story
Invention regulates nerve cells electronically (May 22, 2010) -- A major step toward being able to regulate nerve cells externally with the help of electronics has been taken by researchers in Sweden. The breakthrough is based on an ion transistor of plastic that can transport ions and charged biomolecules and thereby address and regulate cells. ... > full story
Gesture-based computing on the cheap: Multicolored gloves making Minority Report-style interfaces more accessible (May 22, 2010) -- Ever since Steven Spielberg's 2002 sci-fi movie Minority Report, in which a black-clad Tom Cruise stands in front of a transparent screen manipulating a host of video images simply by waving his hands, the idea of gesture-based computer interfaces has captured the imagination of technophiles. Researchers have now developed a system that could make gestural interfaces much more practical. Aside from a standard webcam, like those found in many new computers, the system uses only a single piece of hardware: a multicolored Lycra glove that could be manufactured for about a dollar. ... > full story
Breaking the logjam: Improving data download from outer space (May 22, 2010) -- Space satellites that detect nuclear events and environmental gasses face a data logjam because their increasingly powerful sensors produce more information than their bandwidth can easily transmit. Experiments at the International Space Station indicate that sending more complex computer chips into space to pre-reduce the large data stream sent Earthbound could be the answer. But how well would the latest, most sensitive computing electronics fare in the harsh environment of outer space? ... > full story
Better way to detect food allergies (May 22, 2010) -- A chemical engineer believes he has a better way to diagnose such allergies. His new technology can analyze individual immune cells taken from patients, allowing for precise measurement of the cells' response to allergens such as milk and peanuts. ... > full story
Cassini heading to Saturn's Titan after tagging Enceladus (May 22, 2010) -- NASA's Cassini spacecraft is on its way to a flyby of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, after capturing some stunning images of Enceladus. One view shows the hazy outline of Titan behind Saturn's rings, with the dark curve of Enceladus at the bottom. ... > full story
NASA's Mars rovers set surface longevity record (May 22, 2010) -- NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Project will pass a historic Martian longevity record on May 20. The Opportunity rover will surpass the duration record set by NASA's Viking 1 Lander of six years and 116 days operating on the surface of Mars. The effects of favorable weather on the red planet could also help the rovers generate more power. ... > full story
Low-cost, ultra-fast DNA sequencing brings diagnostic use closer (May 22, 2010) -- Researchers show the viability of a novel, more efficient method to sequence DNA using nanopores. By doing it fast and inexpensively, this method brings routine use of DNA sequencing in medical diagnostics closer to reality. ... > full story
Hubble finds a star eating a planet (May 21, 2010) -- The hottest known planet in the Milky Way galaxy may also be its shortest-lived world. The doomed planet is being eaten by its parent star, according to observations made by a new instrument on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS). The planet may only have another 10 million years left before it is completely devoured. ... > full story
Presence of chemical in smoker's breath indicates person has smoked in last three days (May 21, 2010) -- If you smoke, your breath contains 2,5-dimethylfuran. A team of Catalan researchers have proved that the presence of this chemical compound indicates that a person has smoked in the last three days. This substance does not appear in the breath of non-smokers, unless they have been in direct contact with tobacco smoke for a long time. ... > full story
Better ways to inhibit blood clots revealed by new study (May 21, 2010) -- A new study reveals factors that improve the performance of synthetic fibrin "knobs", which bind to "holes" on fibrinogen molecules to prevent blood clot formation. The study also identifies a novel synthetic knob that displays a 10-fold higher affinity for holes than current synthetic knobs. ... > full story
Arsenic in playgrounds nothing to worry about, study suggests (May 21, 2010) -- Pressure-treated wooden playground structures do not live up to the bad reputation they have earned as being harmful to children, according to the findings of a new study. ... > full story
Probing the dark side of the universe: In search of primordial gravitational waves (May 21, 2010) -- Much like ripples moving across a pond, gravitational waves waves stretch the fabric of space itself as they pass by. If detected, these elusive waves could provide an unprecedented view of the earliest moments of our universe. Researchers are exploring the most likely detection method of these waves. ... > full story
To improve lung cancer diagnosis, good medicine is a polymer pill (May 21, 2010) -- Doctors may soon be able to diagnose lung cancer more effectively, thanks to scientists who have found ways both to increase the accuracy of computed tomography scans and to lessen the amount of time necessary to perceive telltale changes in lung tissue. ... > full story
Scientists discover the molecular heart of collective behavior (May 21, 2010) -- A group of scientists seeking the answer to the mystery of collective motion has found strong evidence pointing to the idea that collective behavior can arise in cells that initially may not be moving at all, but are prodded into action by an external agent such as a chemical. ... > full story
Non-invasive technique could distinguish fertile and infertile human sperm cells (May 21, 2010) -- Scientists in Germany have developed a non-invasive technique that within seconds can distinguish healthy fertile and infertile sperm cells by collecting the spectral chemical fingerprint. The method has the potential for a novel fertility technology and a test scheme which does not only rely on morphological characteristics, but also utilizes chemical signatures. ... > full story
'Scrubbing' chemical-contaminated buildings clean with lasers (May 21, 2010) -- While no terrorist has managed to deploy a dirty bomb, the same cannot be said of chemical agents. In a series of tests still underway researchers are using lasers to scrub surfaces clean of sulfur mustard gas and VX, a nerve agent. The tests have proved successful so far, even on complex, porous surfaces like concrete. ... > full story
Seeing moire in graphene (May 21, 2010) -- Researchers have demonstrated that atomic scale moire patterns, an interference pattern that appears when two or more grids are overlaid slightly askew, can be used to measure how sheets of graphene are stacked and reveal areas of strain. ... > full story
How laptops can enhance learning in college classrooms (May 21, 2010) -- Despite the distraction potential of laptops in college classrooms, new research shows that they can actually increase students' engagement, attentiveness, participation and learning. ... > full story
Clue to antimatter conundrum: Physicists find evidence for significant matter-antimatter asymmetry (May 21, 2010) -- Scientists at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory have announced that they have found evidence for significant violation of matter-antimatter symmetry in the behavior of particles containing bottom quarks beyond what is expected in the current theory, the Standard Model of particle physics. The new result indicates a one percent difference between the production of pairs of muons and pairs of antimuons in the decay of B mesons produced in high-energy collisions at Fermilab's Tevatron particle collider. ... > full story
Research promises more healthful vegetable oil -- and tractor fuel to harvest it (May 21, 2010) -- Genetic discoveries from a shrub called the burning bush, known for its brilliant red fall foliage, could fire new advances in biofuels and low-calorie food oils, according to scientists. New low-cost DNA sequencing technology applied to seeds of the species Euonymus alatus -- a common ornamental planting -- was crucial to identifying the gene responsible for its manufacture of a novel, high-quality oil. ... > full story
Researchers develop computer-based system to automatically track radiation dose exposure from CT scans (May 21, 2010) -- Researchers have developed a computer-based system that can automatically track patient-specific radiation dose exposure (based on a patient's size and weight) on every patient that receives a computed tomography scan, providing patients with a way to start tracking their cumulative health care-related radiation exposure, according to a new study. ... > full story
Big bang in the protein universe? (May 21, 2010) -- New research is providing evidence supporting the common ancestry of life, thanks to a new computational approach to study protein evolution. The work takes its inspiration from the astronomer Edwin Hubble and uses his approach to study protein evolution. The extrapolation of Hubble's approach to proteins shows that proteins that share a common ancestor billions of years ago continue to diverge in their molecular composition. ... > full story
Finding the soft spot: Researcher develops tool to measure tissue damage in the bedridden and paralyzed (May 21, 2010) -- An engineer has developed the prototype for a new device he calls a Soft Tissue Stress Monitor, designed to alleviate some of the deep-tissue damage and problems suffered by the amputated and infirm. ... > full story
Solar power manufacturing makes good business sense for governments, study finds (May 21, 2010) -- Canadian and provincial governments could spend .4 billion to build a large scale solar photovoltaic manufacturing plant and then give it away for free and still earn a profit in the long run, according to a financial analysis. ... > full story
Norwegian scientists assist US oil-spill combat efforts (May 21, 2010) -- Norwegian oil-spill researchers are helping the American authorities to estimate what happens to the oil that is leaking out into the Gulf of Mexico. ... > full story
First results study on impact of large celestial body on Jupiter (May 20, 2010) -- Astronomers have researched the impact of a large-sized celestial body on the planet Jupiter last July. According to the studies, the main spot, a very black cloud comprising the waste materials produced by the impact, reached a size of about 5,000 km in the atmosphere of Jupiter, even though it was surrounded by a halo caused by the falling of the material expelled from the atmosphere of up to 8,000 km, slightly smaller than the size of the Earth. ... > full story
Nanotech breath sensor detects diabetes and potentially serious complication (May 20, 2010) -- Scientists are reporting development and successful testing of a sensor that can instantly tell whether someone has type I diabetes. It could also be used by emergency room doctors to determine whether a patient has developed diabetic ketoacidosis, a potentially serious complication that happens when diabetics do not take enough insulin. Someday the technology may also be used by diabetics, in their own homes, to determine whether they need more insulin. ... > full story
Biodiesel from sewage sludge within pennies a gallon of being competitive (May 20, 2010) -- Existing technology can produce biodiesel fuel from municipal sewage sludge that is within a few cents a gallon of being competitive with conventional diesel refined from petroleum, according to a new article. Sludge is the solid material left behind from the treatment of sewage at waste-water treatment plants. ... > full story
Instantaneous velocity in Brownian particles observed, a century after Einstein said it would be impossible (May 20, 2010) -- A century after Albert Einstein said we would never be able to observe the instantaneous velocity of tiny particles as they randomly shake and shimmy (in so-called Brownian motion), physicist Mark Raizen and his group have done so. ... > full story
Artificial butterfly in flight and filmed (May 20, 2010) -- A group of Japanese researchers have succeeded in building a fully functional replica model -- an ornithopter -- of a swallowtail butterfly, and they have filmed their model butterfly flying. ... > full story
Possible new class of supernovae puts calcium in your bones (May 20, 2010) -- Astronomers have discovered several examples of an unusual type of exploding star that may be a new class of supernovae spewing calcium into the galaxy, which eventually ends up in all of us. Researchers studied one supernova detected in 2005, and concluded that it resulted from the thermonuclear explosion of a helium layer on a low mass white dwarf. ... > full story
Nuclear magnetic resonance aids in drug design (May 20, 2010) -- A new study is using nuclear magnetic imaging, to move drug design into groundbreaking consideration of the dynamic flexibility of drugs and their targets. ... > full story
Nanotech discovery could lead to breakthrough in infrared satellite imaging technology (May 20, 2010) -- Researchers have developed a new nanotechnology-based "microlens" that uses gold to boost the strength of infrared imaging and could lead to a new generation of ultra-powerful satellite cameras and night-vision devices. By leveraging the unique properties of nanoscale gold to "squeeze" light into tiny holes in the surface of the device, the researchers have doubled the detectivity of a quantum dot-based infrared detector. ... > full story
Diplopedia -- Wikipedia-style diplomacy -- a success at US Department of State (May 20, 2010) -- A new study of eDiplomacy looks at the five-year history of creating and implementing Diplopedia, the US Department of State's use of the Wikipedia-style diplomacy Web 2.0 tool. ... > full story
Asteroid caught marching across Tadpole Nebula (May 19, 2010) -- A new infrared image from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, showcases the Tadpole nebula, a star-forming hub in the Auriga constellation about 12,000 light-years from Earth. As WISE scanned the sky, it happened to catch an asteroid in our solar system passing by. ... > full story
Mysterious ball lightning: Illusion or reality? (May 19, 2010) -- Ball lightning is a rare circular light phenomenon occurring during thunderstorms. Scientists have been puzzled by the nature of these apparent fire balls for a long time. Now physicists have calculated that the magnetic field of long lightning strokes may produce the image of luminous shapes, also known as phosphenes, in the brain. This finding may offer an explanation for many ball lightning observations. ... > full story
New technique enables drugs tests via exhaled breath (May 19, 2010) -- Researchers in Sweden have developed a new technique that makes drug testing possible through exhaled air for the first time. By examining people who had received emergency care for an amphetamine overdose, the researchers found that in all cases there were traces of amphetamine and metamphetamine in the exhaled breath. ... > full story
Fly the eco-friendly skies: Airplanes that would use 70 percent less fuel than current models (May 19, 2010) -- In what could set the stage for a fundamental shift in commercial aviation, a team of researchers has designed a green airplane that is estimated to use 70 percent less fuel than current planes while also reducing noise and emission of nitrogen oxides (NOx). ... > full story
Control of cell movement with light accomplished in living organisms (May 19, 2010) -- A new technique uses light to manipulate the activity of a protein at precise times and places within a living cell, providing a new tool for scientists who study the fundamentals of protein function. ... > full story
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