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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 30:
Blackbody radiation induces attractive force stronger than gravity
Perfectly non-reflective objects, called blackbodies, produce blackbody radiation when at a uniform temperature. Although the properties of blackbody radiation depend on the blackbody's temperature, this radiation has always been thought to have a net repulsive effect. Now in a new study, scientists have theoretically shown that blackbody radiation induces a second force on nearby atoms and molecules that is usually attractive and, quite surprisingly, even stronger than the repulsive radiation pressure. Consequently, the atoms and molecules are pulled toward the blackbody surface by a net attractive force that can be even stronger than gravity. The new attractive force�which the scientists call the "blackbody force"�suggests that a variety of astrophysical scenarios should be revisited.
Human hybrids: a closer look at the theory and evidence
There was considerable fallout, both positive and negative, from our first story covering the radical pig-chimp hybrid theory put forth by Dr. Eugene McCarthy, a geneticist who's proposing that humans first arose from an ancient hybrid cross between pigs and chimpanzees. Despite the large number of comments, here at Phys.org, on macroevolution.net, and on several other discussion forums, little in the way of a scientific consensus has emerged. By and large, those coming out against the theory had surprisingly little science to offer in their sometimes personal attacks against McCarthy.
World changing technology enables crops to take nitrogen from the air
A major new technology has been developed by The University of Nottingham, which enables all of the world's crops to take nitrogen from the air rather than expensive and environmentally damaging fertilisers.
British scientists offer explanations on global warming pause
(Phys.org) �A team of climate experts from Britain's national weather service (The Met Office) has given a series of presentations at the Science Media Centre in London with the aim of trying to explain why global warming has flattened over the past decade. Journalists were invited to listen as climatologists explained theories that have been developed to describe the current "pause" in global temperature increases the planet has been experiencing.
Discoveries from Planck may mean rethinking how the universe began
This spring, humanity was shown its most detailed map of the early universe ever created. Generated by observations from the Planck spacecraft, the map revealed fluctuations in temperature in the relic radiation left over from the Big Bang�what we call the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB).
Researchers stop and store light for 60 seconds
A team of researchers at Germany's University of Darmstadt has succeeded in causing light to stop and then to be held in place for 60 seconds. In their paper published in the journal Physical Review Letters, the researchers describe how they achieved this feat and how their technique might be used in possible future applications.
Ancient technology for metal coatings 2,000 years ago can't be matched even today
Artists and craftsmen more than 2,000 years ago developed thin-film coating technology unrivaled even by today's standards for producing DVDs, solar cells, electronic devices and other products. Understanding these sophisticated metal-plating techniques from ancient times, described in the ACS journal Accounts of Chemical Research, could help preserve priceless artistic and other treasures from the past.
Greening of the Earth pushed way back in time
Conventional scientific wisdom has it that plants and other creatures have only lived on land for about 500 million years, and that landscapes of the early Earth were as barren as Mars.
Slingatron vision is to launch payloads into orbit
A Kickstarter project features Slingatron, the work of a seasoned team of scientists as a way to put cargo into orbit. The Slingatron is a mechanical, hypervelocity mass accelerator. The inventor of the Slingatron is Dr. Derek A. Tidman, author of the book, "SLINGATRON - A Mechanical Hypervelocity Mass Accelerator." The book sets forth the concept and now Hyper V Technologies of Chantilly, Virginia, the project leaders, are to put the Tidman concept into action.
Hot-fire tests show 3D printed rocket parts rival traditionally manufactured parts
What can survive blazing temperatures of almost 6,000 degrees Fahrenheit without melting? What did not break apart at extreme pressures? What is made by a new process that forms a complex part in just one piece? What takes less than three weeks to go from manufacturing to testing? What can reduce the costs of expensive rocket parts by 60 percent or more?
Removing complexity layers from the universe's creation
Complicated statistical behaviour observed in complex systems such as early universe can often be understood if it is broken down into simpler ones. Two physicists, Petr Jizba (currently affiliated with the Czech Technical University in Prague), and Fabio Scardigli (now working at Kyoto University in Japan), have just published results in EPJ C pertaining to theoretical predictions of such cosmological systems' dynamics.
Light-emitting nanotubes get brighter with zero-dimensional states
Carbon nanotubes have the potential to function as light-emitting devices, which could lead to a variety of nanophotonics applications. However, nanotubes currently have a low luminescence quantum yield, typically around 1%, which is restricted by their one-dimensional nature. In a new study, scientists have demonstrated that artificially modifying the dimensionality of carbon nanotubes by doping them with zero-dimensional states can increase their luminosity to 18%. The findings could lead to the development of nanophotonics devices such as a near-infrared single-photon emitter that operates at room temperature.
Scotland lunar-calendar find sparks Stone Age rethink
Archeologists have discovered a lunar calendar in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, that is nearly ten thousand years old. Their findings show that the calendar makers (1) thought about time and (2) figured out a means to follow it at a period in history that was still in the Stone Age. The discovery is considered both surprising and important because it now places a calendar nearly five thousand years before what was previously considered as the first formal calendar, created in Mesopotamia 5,000 years ago. But here, a discovery has been made of a calendar construct appearing to track the phases of the moon nearly 10,000 years ago.
US tech firms losing business over PRISM: poll
Revelations about the US government's vast data collection programs have already started hurting American technology firms, according to an industry survey released this week.
Researchers prove dogs are able to differentiate colors
A team of researchers in Russia has conducted a series of experiments that prove that dogs are able to distinguish between different colors. In their paper published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, the team describes the experiments with dogs they conducted and the results they found.
Researchers detect B-mode polarization in cosmic microwave background
Researchers working at the South Pole Telescope (SPT) have detected tiny fluctuations�known as B-mode polarization�in cosmic background radiation. The team describes their findings in their paper they've uploaded to the preprint server arXiv.
What if quantum physics worked on a macroscopic level?
Quantum physics concerns a world of infinitely small things. But for years, researchers from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, have been attempting to observe the properties of quantum physics on a larger scale, even macroscopic. In January 2011, they managed to entangle crystals, therefore surpassing the atomic dimension. Now, Professor Nicolas Gisin's team has successfully entangled two optic fibers, populated by 500 photons. Unlike previous experiments which were carried out with the fiber optics of one photon, this new feat (which has been published in Nature Physics) begins to answer a fundamental question: can quantum properties survive on a macroscopic level?
"Valleytronics" � a new type of electronics in diamond
(Phys.org) �An alternative and novel concept in electronics is to utilize the wave quantum number of the electron in a crystalline material to encode information. In a new article in Nature Materials, Isberg et.al. propose using this valley degree of freedom in diamond to enable valleytronic information processing or as a new route to quantum computing.
Cost of Arctic methane release could be 'size of global economy' warn experts
Researchers have warned of an "economic time-bomb" in the Arctic, following a ground-breaking analysis of the likely cost of methane emissions in the region.
Researchers build self-assembling multi-copter distributed flight array (w/ Video)
Researchers at ETH Zurich, a technical University in Switzerland, have developed a unique type of copter. It's made of several single rotor craft that physically connect to one another autonomously to create a larger multiple rotor craft. Because the craft is self-assembled, each time it takes flight, it has a different configuration. The researchers call their craft a Distributed Flight Array (DFA).
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