Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 45:
University physicists study urine splash-back and offer best tactics for men (w/ Video)
(Phys.org) �A team of four physicists at Brigham Young University (calling themselves "wizz-kids") has been studying the physics properties of urine splash-back in a urinal-like environment. Their mission was to uncover the fluid dynamics involved in male peeing and to hopefully discern which approach leads to the least amount of splash-back (and less mess). They will be presenting their results at the American Physical Society Meeting later this month.
Astronomers answer key question: How common are habitable planets?
UC Berkeley and University of Hawaii astronomers analyzed all four years of Kepler data in search of Earth-size planets in the habitable zones of sun-like stars, and then rigorously tested how many planets they may have missed. Based on this analysis, they estimate that 22 percent of stars like the sun have potentially habitable Earth-size planets, though not all may be rocky or have liquid water, a presumed prerequisite for life.
Physicists find black holes in globular star clusters, upsetting 40 years of theory
(Phys.org)�A Texas Tech University astrophysicist was part of a team of researchers that discovered the first examples of black holes in globular star clusters in our own galaxy, upsetting 40 years of theories against their possible existence.
First study results of Russian Chelyabinsk meteor published
The meteor that exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia in February 2013 was "a wake-up call," according to a University of California, Davis scientist who participated in analyzing the event. The work is published November 7, 2013 in the journal Science by an international team of researchers.
Wireless device converts 'lost' energy into electric power
Using inexpensive materials configured and tuned to capture microwave signals, researchers at Duke University's Pratt School of Engineering have designed a power-harvesting device with efficiency similar to that of modern solar panels.
Three-dimensional carbon goes metallic
A theoretical, three-dimensional (3D) form of carbon that is metallic under ambient temperature and pressure has been discovered by an international research team.
Researchers shed new light on dark energy, cosmic speed-up
In a new study, Dartmouth researchers rule out a controversial theory that the accelerating expansion of the universe is an illusion.
Tiny laser gives big boost to high speed data transmission
(Phys.org) �High-speed communication just got a turbo boost, thanks to a new laser technology developed at the University of Illinois that transmits error-free data over fiber optic networks at a blazing fast 40 gigabits per second � the fastest in the United States.
Solid Concepts 3D prints world's first metal gun (w/ Video)
(Phys.org) �3D printing company Solid Concepts has announced that it has 3D printed the world's first metal gun�other guns printed using 3D printers have been made of plastic. Representatives for Solid Concepts say they created the gun to demonstrate how strong and accurate products made using 3D printing technology can be.
Newly discovered predatory dinosaur 'king of gore' reveals the origins of T. rex
A remarkable new species of tyrannosaur has been unearthed in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM), southern Utah. The huge carnivore inhabited Laramidia, a landmass formed on the western coast of a shallow sea that flooded the central region of North America, isolating western and eastern portions of the continent for millions of years during the Late Cretaceous Period, between 95-70 million years ago. The newly discovered dinosaur, belonging to the same evolutionary branch as the famous Tyrannosaurus rex, was announced today in the open-access scientific journal PLOS ONE and unveiled on exhibit in the Past Worlds Gallery at the Natural History Museum of Utah at the Rio Tinto Center in Salt Lake City, Utah.
The oldest ice core: Finding a 1.5 million-year record of Earth's climate
(Phys.org) �How far into the past can ice-core records go? Scientists have now identified regions in Antarctica they say could store information about Earth's climate and greenhouse gases extending as far back as 1.5 million years, almost twice as old as the oldest ice core drilled to date. The results are published today in Climate of the Past, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).
High-energy physicists predict new family of four-quark objects
An international team of high-energy physicists says the discovery of an electrically charged subatomic particle called Zc(4020) is a sign that they have begun to unveil a whole new family of four-quark objects.
Researchers claim to have discovered why warm water freezes faster than cooler water
(Phys.org) �A team of researchers at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University believes they have solved the mystery of why warm water freezes faster than cooler water. It has to do with the way energy is stored in the hydrogen bonds between water molecules they suggest in their paper which they've uploaded to the preprint server arXiv.
The next big thing in the energy sector: Photovoltaic generated DC electricity
(Phys.org) �Energy consumption continues to grow. The costs of generation and transmission of energy must come down for the increased consumption to be sustainable. Energy must be generated without depleting resources, without causing pollution, and without incurring waste. Transmission of energy too must be efficient. These ideal goals, when realized, would enrich lives, regardless of economic distinction.
Solar activity playing a minimal role in global warming, research suggests
Changes in solar activity have contributed no more than 10 per cent to global warming in the twentieth century, a new study has found.
From one collapsing star, two black holes form and fuse
(Phys.org) �Black holes�massive objects in space with gravitational forces so strong that not even light can escape them�come in a variety of sizes. On the smaller end of the scale are the stellar-mass black holes that are formed during the deaths of stars. At the larger end are supermassive black holes, which contain up to one billion times the mass of our sun. Over billions of years, small black holes can slowly grow into the supermassive variety by taking on mass from their surroundings and also by merging with other black holes. But this slow process can't explain the problem of supermassive black holes existing in the early universe�such black holes would have formed less than one billion years after the Big Bang.
Theoretical physics � like sex, but with no need to experiment
There are not many professions where people routinely ask you to justify your work, but theoretical physics one of them. In the wake of the recent Nobel Prize to Peter Higgs and Fran�ois Englert for their research on the Higgs Boson, this scrutiny has intensified. Richard Feynman once quipped, "Physics is like sex. Sure, it may give some practical results, but that's not why we do it." I will attempt a more comprehensive answer.
U.K. town to deploy driverless pods to replace busses
(Phys.org) �Milton Keynes, a town north of London, has announced that it will be deploying 100 driverless pods (officially known as ULTra PRT transport pods) as a public transportation system. A similar system has been running for two years at Heathrow airport. The plan is to have the system up and running by 2015, with a full rollout by 2017. The move marks the first time that self-driving vehicles will be allowed to run on public roads in that country.
Ambri liquid metal battery: Prototype deployment set for 2014
(Phys.org) �November is a milestone month for Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) spinoff company Ambri, where a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Marlborough, Massachusetts, on November 7 marked its new production facility. Ambri is targeting its liquid metal battery technology for use in the electricity grid. The company believes they have an electricity storage solution that will change the way electric grids are operated worldwide. Ambri's liquid metal battery technology breaks away from other storage options; each cell consists of three self-separating liquid layers, two metals and a salt, that float on top of each other based on density differences and immiscibility, said Ambri. The system operates at elevated temperature maintained by self-heating during charging and discharging.
SmartLight more than a bright idea, it's a revolution in interior lighting ready to shine, according to researchers
A pair of University of Cincinnati researchers has seen the light � a bright, powerful light � and it just might change the future of how building interiors are brightened.
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