The EDGE: ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Monday, September 3, 2012

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Monday, September 3, 2012

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Design help for drug cocktails for HIV patients: Mathematical model helps design efficient multi-drug therapies (September 2, 2012) -- For years, doctors treating those with HIV have recognized a relationship between how faithfully patients take the drugs they prescribe, and how likely the virus is to develop drug resistance. New research is helping to explain why those differences exist, and may help doctors quickly and cheaply design new combinations of drugs that are less likely to result in resistance. ... > full story

A millimeter-scale, wirelessly powered cardiac device (August 31, 2012) -- Electrical engineers overturn existing models to demonstrate the feasibility of a millimeter-sized, wirelessly powered cardiac device. The findings, say the researchers, could dramatically alter the scale of medical devices implanted in the human body. ... > full story

Hubble spots a supernova in NGC 5806 (August 31, 2012) -- A new image from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows NGC 5806, a spiral galaxy in the constellation Virgo (the Virgin). It lies around 80 million light years from Earth. Also visible in this image is a supernova explosion called SN 2004dg. ... > full story

NASA's GRAIL moon twins begin extended mission science (August 31, 2012) -- NASA's twin, lunar-orbiting Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) spacecraft began data collection for the start of the mission's extended operations. ... > full story

New, less expensive nanolithography technique developed (August 31, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a new nanolithography technique that is less expensive than other approaches and can be used to create technologies with biomedical applications. ... > full story

An open platform improves biomedical-image processing (August 31, 2012) -- A new open source platform allows for application sharing as a way of improving biomedical-image processing. Fiji has become a de facto standard that assists laboratories and microscope companies in their development of more precise products, researchers involved in the work say. ... > full story

First implantation of prototype bionic eye with 24 electrodes: 'All of a sudden I could see a little flash of light' (August 31, 2012) -- In a major development, researchers in Australia have successfully performed the first implantation of an early prototype bionic eye with 24 electrodes. A patient with profound vision loss due to retinitis pigmentosa, an inherited condition, has now received the implant that enables her to experience some vision. ... > full story

NASA's Jupiter-bound Juno changes its orbit (August 30, 2012) -- Earlier today, navigators and mission controllers for NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter watched their computer screens as their spacecraft successfully performed its first deep-space maneuver. This first firing of Juno's main engine is one of two planned to refine the spacecraft's trajectory, setting the stage for a gravity assist from a flyby of Earth on Oct 9, 2013. Juno will arrive at Jupiter on July 4, 2016. ... > full story

Shading Earth: Delivering solar geoengineering materials to combat global warming may be feasible and affordable (August 30, 2012) -- A cost analysis of the technologies needed to transport materials into the stratosphere to reduce the amount of sunlight hitting Earth and therefore reduce the effects of global climate change has shown that they are both feasible and affordable. The study has shown that the basic technology currently exists and could be assembled and implemented in a number of different forms for less than USD billion a year. ... > full story

'Nanoresonators' might improve cell phone performance (August 30, 2012) -- Researchers have learned how to mass produce tiny mechanical devices that could help cell phone users avoid the nuisance of dropped calls and slow downloads. The devices are designed to ease congestion over the airwaves to improve the performance of cell phones and other portable devices. ... > full story

Photonic interactions measured at atomic level (August 30, 2012) -- By measuring the unique properties of light on the scale of a single atom, researchers believe that they have characterized the limits of metal's ability in devices that enhance light. ... > full story

'Promiscuous' enzymes still prevalent in metabolism: Challenges fundamental notion of enzyme specificity and efficiency (August 30, 2012) -- Open an undergraduate biochemistry textbook and you will learn that enzymes are highly efficient and specific in catalyzing chemical reactions in living organisms, and that they evolved to this state from their “sloppy” and “promiscuous” ancestors to allow cells to grow more efficiently. This fundamental paradigm is being challenged in a new study by bioengineers who reported in the journal Science what a few enzymologists have suspected for years: many enzymes are still pretty sloppy and promiscuous, catalyzing multiple chemical reactions in living cells, for reasons that were previously not well understood. ... > full story

NASA's Dawn spacecraft prepares for trek toward dwarf planet (August 30, 2012) -- NASA's Dawn spacecraft is on track to become the first probe to orbit and study two distant solar system destinations, to help scientists answer questions about the formation of our solar system. The spacecraft is scheduled to leave the giant asteroid Vesta on Sept. 4 PDT (Sept. 5 EDT) to start its two-and-a-half-year journey to the dwarf planet Ceres. ... > full story

'Weird chemistry' by microbe is prime source of ocean methane (August 30, 2012) -- Up to four percent of the methane on Earth comes from the ocean's oxygen-rich waters, but scientists have been unable to identify the source of this potent greenhouse gas. Now researchers report that they have found the culprit: A bit of "weird chemistry" practiced by the most abundant microbes on the planet. ... > full story

Uncoiling the cucumber's enigma: Biological mechanism for coiling, and unusual type of spring discovered (August 30, 2012) -- In the creeping plant's tendrils, researchers discover a biological mechanism for coiling and stumble upon an unusual type of spring. ... > full story

Radiation belt storm probes: Spacecraft pair to explore mysterious region where other satellites fear to tread (August 30, 2012) -- Spacecraft pair will explore the mysterious region where other satellites fear to tread. ... > full story

Smartphone app can track objects on the battlefield as well as on the sports field (August 30, 2012) -- Researchers have developed new software using smartphones' GPS and imaging abilities, that determine the exact location of distant objects as well as monitor the speed and direction of moving objects. ... > full story

Surprisingly bright superbubble in nearby nebula (August 30, 2012) -- A new composite image shows a superbubble in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), a small satellite galaxy of the Milky Way, located about 160,000 light years from Earth. Many new stars, some of them very massive, are forming in the star cluster NGC 1929, which is embedded in the nebula N44. ... > full story

New flexible electronics technology may lead to new medical uses (August 30, 2012) -- Researchers have developed technology that opens new possibilities for health care and medical applications of electronic devices. ... > full story

Researchers make clinical trials a virtual reality (August 30, 2012) -- Clinical trials can be time-consuming, expensive and intrusive, but they are also necessary. Researchers have developed an invention that makes clinical trials more efficient by moving them into the virtual world. ... > full story

NASA launches radiation belt storm probes mission (August 30, 2012) -- NASA's Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP), the first twin-spacecraft mission designed to explore our planet's radiation belts, launched into the predawn skies at 4:05 a.m. EDT Thursday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. The two satellites, each weighing just less than 1,500 pounds, comprise the first dual-spacecraft mission specifically created to investigate this hazardous regions of near-Earth space, known as the radiation belts. These two belts, named for their discoverer, James Van Allen, encircle the planet and are filled with highly charged particles. The belts are affected by solar storms and coronal mass ejections and sometimes swell dramatically. When this occurs, they can pose dangers to communications, GPS satellites and human spaceflight. ... > full story

Record-breaking stellar explosion helps astronomers understand far-off galaxy (August 30, 2012) -- Astronomers took advantage of the most distant supernova of its type to probe a galaxy some 9.5 billion light years away. The light from the exploding star, allowed astronomers to confirm that the gas environment between the stars in the distant galaxy is "reassuringly normal." ... > full story

A whisker-inspired approach to tactile sensing (August 30, 2012) -- Inspired by the twitching whiskers of common rats and Etruscan shrews, researchers have developed rodent-like robots and an innovative tactile sensor system that could be used to help find people in burning buildings, make vacuum cleaners more efficient and eventually improve keyhole surgery. ... > full story

Japanese spacecraft to search for clues of Earth's first life (August 29, 2012) -- The Japanese space agency JAXA plans to land a spacecraft onto an asteroid in 2018 to search for clues of how life began on Earth. ... > full story

Saturn and its largest moon reflect their true colors (August 29, 2012) -- Posing for portraits for NASA's Cassini spacecraft, Saturn and its largest moon, Titan, show spectacular colors in a quartet of images being released today. One image captures the changing hues of Saturn's northern and southern hemispheres as they pass from one season to the next. ... > full story

'Nano machine shop' shapes nanowires, ultrathin films (August 29, 2012) -- A new "nano machine shop" that shapes nanowires and ultrathin films could represent a future manufacturing method for tiny structures with potentially revolutionary properties. ... > full story

NASA Curiosity rover begins eastbound trek on Martian surface (August 29, 2012) -- NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has set off from its landing vicinity on a trek to a science destination about a quarter mile (400 meters) away, where it may begin using its drill. ... > full story

Computer viruses could take a lesson from showy peacocks (August 29, 2012) -- Computer viruses are constantly replicating throughout computer networks and wreaking havoc. But what if they had to find mates in order to reproduce? Researchers have now created the digital equivalent of spring break to see how mate attraction played out through computer programs. ... > full story

Walls of lunar crater may hold patchy ice (August 29, 2012) -- Scientists have estimated the maximum amount of ice likely to be found inside a permanently shadowed lunar crater located near the moon's south pole. As much as 5 to 10 percent of material, by weight, could be patchy ice, according to astronomers. ... > full story

ACE, workhorse of NASA's heliophysics fleet, is 15 (August 29, 2012) -- The Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) is Earth's vanguard. Orbiting around a point 900,000 miles away between Earth and our sun, this satellite is ever vigilant, recording the combination of radiation -- from the sun, from the solar system, from the galaxy -- that streams by. None of this radiation can harm humans on Earth, but the biggest bursts of particles from the sun can flow into near-Earth space causing a dynamic space weather system that can damage satellites and interfere with radio communication transmissions and navigation systems. ... > full story

Rover leaves tracks in Morse code (August 29, 2012) -- NASA's Curiosity rover took its first test stroll Wednesday Aug. 22, 2012, and beamed back pictures of its accomplishment in the form of track marks in the Martian soil. Careful inspection of the tracks reveals a unique, repeating pattern, which the rover can use as a visual reference to drive more accurately in barren terrain. The pattern is Morse code for JPL, the abbreviation for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., where the rover was designed and built, and the mission is managed. ... > full story

Boeing tests CST-100 parachute protector (August 29, 2012) -- The Boeing Company recently completed a jettison test of its forward heat shield, which will protect the parachutes of the company's CST-100 spacecraft during future missions to and from low Earth orbit. The forward heat shield jettison will start the parachute deployment sequence and provide a safe landing for the capsule and its crew members. The test was part of Boeing's work supporting its funded Space Act Agreement (SAA) with NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP) during Commercial Crew Development Round 2 (CCDev2). ... > full story

NASA's 'Mighty Eagle' robotic prototype lander takes 100-foot free flight (August 29, 2012) -- With a whistle and a roar, the "Mighty Eagle," a NASA robotic prototype lander, sailed to an altitude of 100 feet during another successful free flight Aug. 28 at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. ... > full story

Bonanza of black holes, hot DOGs: NASA's WISE survey uncovers millions of black holes (August 29, 2012) -- NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) mission has led to a bonanza of newfound supermassive black holes and extreme galaxies called hot DOGs, or dust-obscured galaxies. Images from the telescope have revealed millions of dusty black hole candidates across the universe and about 1,000 even dustier objects thought to be among the brightest galaxies ever found. These powerful galaxies, which burn brightly with infrared light, are nicknamed hot DOGs. ... > full story

New antibacterial coating for sutures could reduce infections after surgery (August 29, 2012) -- Responding to an urgent need for better antibacterial coatings on surgical sutures, scientists are reporting the discovery of a new coating that is almost 1,000 times more effective than the most widely used commercial coating. ... > full story

Warning on deterioration of famous Swedish warship, Vasa (August 29, 2012) -- The famous warship, Vasa, displayed in a museum that gets 1.2 million visitors every year and ranks as one of Sweden's most popular tourist attractions, is deteriorating despite ongoing preservation efforts, scientists are reporting. ... > full story

Making dye-sensitized solar panels more efficient (August 29, 2012) -- Engineers are making dye-sensitized solar panels more efficient. They are using mathematical modeling to test the use of nanotubes and a polymer substrate in the panels. ... > full story

New nanomaterial could help keep pilots and sensitive equipment safe from destructive lasers (August 29, 2012) -- Scientists have developed a new material using nanotechnology, which could help keep pilots and sensitive equipment safe from destructive lasers. ... > full story

Synchronized lasers measure how light changes matter: Effects of light at atomic scale probed by mixing x-ray and optical light waves (August 29, 2012) -- How matter responds to light lies at the core of vision, photosynthesis, solar cells, and many other fields of scientific and practical import. But until now, it hasn't been possible to see just how light does it. Now, scientists have demonstrated for the first time that x-ray and optical wave mixing reveals both structure and evolving charge states on the atomic scale. ... > full story

Smallest antenna can increase Wi-Fi speed 200 times (August 29, 2012) -- Researchers have developed the first compact high performance silicon-based cavity-backed slot (CBS) antenna that operates at 135 GHz. ... > full story

Success in growth of regularly-ordered nanometer-scale crystalline thin film using 3-D porous material (August 29, 2012) -- Japanese scientists have succeeded in fabricating a crystalline thin film with a film thickness of nanometer order, in which molecules of a 3-dimensionally strong porous coordination polymer (PCP) are oriented in a designated direction, and demonstrated that this thin film has a reversible gas adsorption/desorption reaction function. ... > full story

Discovery of new colossal magnetoresistance mechanism (August 29, 2012) -- A research group including the NIMS Superconducting Properties Unit and others, in joint work with the University of Fukui, discovered a new material, NaCr2O4, which was developed by ultra-high pressure synthesis and displays a novel type of colossal magnetoresistance effect. ... > full story

Driving an electron spin vortex 'skyrmion' with a microcurrent (August 29, 2012) -- Scientists have succeeded in forming a skyrmion crystal, in which electron spin is aligned in a vortex shape, in a microdevice using the helimagnet FeGe, and driving the skyrmion crystal with an ultra-low current density less than 1/100,000 that of the current necessary to drive magnetic domain walls in ferromagnets. ... > full story

Activating and deactivating gold nanoparticle catalysts may lead to longer-lasting hydrogen fuel cells (August 29, 2012) -- The latest advance in imaging technology helps optimize catalysts for use in onboard fuel processing. A*STAR researchers have identified the subtle, atomic-scale structural transformations that can activate and de-activate gold nanoparticle catalysts, a finding that may lead to longer-lasting hydrogen fuel cells. ... > full story

Photonics: Think thin, think vibrant (August 29, 2012) -- Flat panel displays and many digital devices require thin, efficient and low-cost light-emitters for applications. The pixels that make up the different colors on the display are typically wired to complex electronic circuits, but now researchers have developed a display technology that requires a much simpler architecture for operation. ... > full story

Graphene-based materials kill bacteria two ways (August 29, 2012) -- Graphene-based materials kill bacteria through one of two possible mechanisms. Researchers have now compared the antibacterial activity of graphite, graphite oxide, graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide using the model bacterium Escherichia coli. ... > full story

Twitter data crunching: The new crystal ball (August 29, 2012) -- Scientists have demonstrated that the elimination of contestants in TV talent shows based on public voting, such as American Idol, can be anticipated. They unveiled the predictive power of microblogging Twitter signals -- used as a proxy for the general preference of an audience -- in a recent study. ... > full story

Math ability requires crosstalk in the brain (August 29, 2012) -- Scientists have found that the strength of communication between the left and right hemispheres of the brain predicts performance on basic arithmetic problems. The findings shed light on the neural basis of human math abilities and suggest a possible route to aiding those who suffer from dyscalculia-- an inability to understand and manipulate numbers. ... > full story