Science X Newsletter Friday, Nov 28

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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for November 28, 2014:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- High-fidelity photon-to-atom quantum state transfer could form backbone of quantum networks
- New largest number factored on a quantum device is 56,153
- Study shows graphene able to withstand a speeding bullet
- Bridgmanite: World's most abundant mineral finally named
- Tabletop experiment could detect gravitational waves
- Male sex organ distinguishes 30 millipede species
- Bad weather delays Japan asteroid probe lift off
- Venus Express spacecraft, low on fuel, does delicate dance above doom below
- Researchers collect soil samples from around the globe in effort to conduct fungi survey
- Sperm can carry Ebola for 82 days: WHO
- Vortex of electrons provides unprecedented information on magnetic quantum states in solids
- 'Chatty' cells help build the brain
- Faradair team determined to make hybrid BEHA fly
- Ancient marine algae provides clues of climate change impact on today's microscopic ocean organisms
- Solar tech could enable world's first underground park

Astronomy & Space news

	Bad weather delays Japan asteroid probe lift off Bad weather will delay the launch of a Japanese space probe on a six-year mission to mine a distant asteroid, just weeks after a European spacecraft's historic landing on a comet captivated the world.
	Staying warm: The hot gas in clusters of galaxies Most galaxies lie in clusters, groupings of a few to many thousands of galaxies. Our Milky Way galaxy itself is a member of the "Local Group," a band of about fifty galaxies whose other large member is the Andromeda Galaxy about 2.3 million light-years away. The closest large cluster of galaxies to us is the Virgo Cluster, about 50 million light-years away, with about 2000 members.
	Venus Express spacecraft, low on fuel, does delicate dance above doom below It's been an interesting year for Venus Express. A few months ago, controllers deliberately dipped the spacecraft into the atmosphere of the planet—for science purposes, of course. The daring maneuver was approved because the spacecraft is near the end of its mission. It's nearly out of fuel and will fall into Venus—sometime. Likely in 2015. No one knows exactly when, however.
	JUICE mission gets green light for next stage of development The European Space Agency's JUICE (JUpiter ICy moons Explorer) mission has been given the green light to proceed to the next stage of development. This approval is a milestone for the mission, which aims to launch in 2022 to explore Jupiter and its potentially habitable icy moons.
	Orion on track at T MINUS 1 Week to first blastoff At T MINUS 1 Week on this Thanksgiving Holiday, all launch processing events remain on track for the first blast off of NASA's new Orion crew vehicle on Dec. 4, 2014 which marks the first step on the long road towards sending Humans to Mars in the 2030s.
	'Meteoric smoke': Comet siding spring could alter Mars chemistry permanently Feeling lucky? Events such as the Comet Siding Spring approach by Mars in October only happen about once every eight million years, according to NASA.

Technology news

	Faradair team determined to make hybrid BEHA fly Aiming to transform their concept into a real success, the Faradair team behind a six-seat Bio-Electric-Hybrid-Aircraft (BEHA) have taken this hybrid aircraft project into a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter. They want to make a BEHA prototype.The aircraft will take off and land under electric power. The ability to take off and land on purely electric power gives BEHA the potential for near-silent flight operation and the possibility for night flight capability into and around urban environments. The bio-diesel motor will be used as on-board generator for the electric motors and additional cruise power.
	Solar tech could enable world's first underground park Visitors from around the world are drawn to New York City's High Line, an elevated park built on defunct railroad tracks transformed into an urban sanctuary of flowers, grasses and trees.
	Audi to develop Tesla Model S all-electric rival The Tesla Model S has a rival. Audi is to develop all-electric family car. This is to be a family car that will offer an all-electric range of 280 miles (450 kilometers), according to Auto Express, which reported that the vehicle is under development and is to arrive in 2017. Audi's technical development chief Ulrich Hackenberg told Auto Express, "I was able to reengineer the R8 e-tron project and technology with the team and we are on the way to a range of 450km (280 miles)." Auto Express reporter Jonathan Burn said the all-electric family car is expected to adopt a saloon style body to allow for better packaging. "The larger surface area of a saloon would allow for the bigger and more powerful batteries to be stowed beneath the floor of the car so to not encroach on boot or passenger space."
	After a data breach, it's consumers left holding the bag Shoppers have launched into the holiday buying season and retailers are looking forward to year-end sales that make up almost 20% of their annual receipts. But as you check out at a store or click "purchase" on your online shopping cart, you might be setting yourself up as the victim of a crime.
Germany signs no-spy deal with BlackBerry Germany has approved BlackBerry's purchase of encryption firm Secusmart after signing a "no-spy" agreement with the Canadian smartphone maker.
E-Voting: Risky technology or great improvement? On this forthcoming weekend the Australian state election takes place, and in Victoria State they will be using a new e-voting system to improve secrecy, reliability and user-friendliness. But how secure are such systems? And do people trust such systems? These are key questions for Prof. Peter Y A Ryan, e-voting expert at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) from the University of Luxembourg. The technology that will be applied at this weekends state election is based on Ryan's original voting concept called "Pret-a-Voter" that he developed in 2004.
Brain inspired data engineering What if next-generation ICT systems could be based on the brain's structure and its cognitive and adaptive processes? A groundbreaking paradigm of brain-inspired intelligent ICT architectures is being born.
	A green data center with an autonomous power supply A new data center in the United States is generating electricity for its servers entirely from renewable sources, converting biogas from a sewage treatment plant into electricity and water. Siemens implemented the pilot project, which recently went into operation, together with Microsoft and FuelCell Energy. The data center is not connected to the public power grid. Siemens developed and installed intelligent control and monitoring technology for the plant as well as energy management software so that the servers can be reliably supplied with electricity at all times. The partners intend to demonstrate that using intelligent hardware and software, even critical installations such as data centers can be reliably operated with alternative energy sources.
	Can we create an energy efficient Internet? With the number of Internet connected devices rapidly increasing, researchers from Melbourne are starting a new research program to reduce energy consumption of such devices.

Medicine & Health news

	Duality in the human genome Humans don't like being alone, and their genes are no different. Together we are stronger, and the two versions of a gene – one from each parent – need each other. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics in Berlin have analysed the genetic makeup of several hundred people and decoded the genetic information on the two sets of chromosomes separately. In this relatively small group alone they found millions of different gene forms. The results also show that genetic mutations do not occur randomly in the two parental chromosome sets and that they are distributed in the same ratio in everyone.
	'Chatty' cells help build the brain The cerebral cortex, which controls higher processes such as perception, thought and cognition, is the most complex structure in the mammalian central nervous system. Although much is known about the intricate structure of this brain region, the processes governing its formation remain uncertain. Research led by Carina Hanashima from the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology has now uncovered how feedback between cells, as well as molecular factors, helps shape cortical development during mouse embryogenesis.
	Sperm can carry Ebola for 82 days: WHO Sperm can carry the Ebola virus for at least 82 days, the World Health Organization said Friday, urging men recovering from the disease to use condoms for three months after the onset of symptoms.
Thai parliament votes to ban commercial surrogacy (Update) Thailand's parliament has voted to ban commercial surrogacy after outrage erupted over the unregulated industry following a series scandals including the case of an Australian couple accused of abandoning a baby with Down's syndrome.
Behavioral interventions to prevent progression to diabetes equally effective in men and women Behavioural and drug interventions aiming to prevent people with prediabetes progressing to full blown type 2 diabetes are equally effective for both sexes at preventing progression and reducing weight, according to a new systematic review and meta-analysis. The research is by Dr Anna Glechner, Danube University Krems, Austria, and Dr Jürgen Harreiter, Medical University of Vienna, Austria, and colleagues.
	British-led scientists trial 15-minute Ebola test in Guinea British scientists announced trials on a 15-minute Ebola test in Guinea as France's Francois Hollande arrived in Conakry on Friday, becoming the first Western leader to visit one of the countries devastated by the epidemic.
How do Tourette's patients react to visual stimulation with their own self-image? Tourette's syndrome is characterised by tics caused in many by premonitory urges; sensations which give patients compulsion to act to relieve discomfort. Habit reversal therapy conditions patients into heightened awareness of premonitory urges and forced counteraction of the tic.
Johns Hopkins docs, researchers explain why you and your family should get vaccinated against the flu One little stick can save your life. The flu shot remains critically important to fight off the influenza virus, both around the world and in your home, say doctors and researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who encourage people 6 months of age and older to get vaccinated against this year's influenza virus.
Beijing adopts smoking ban for public places: state media China's capital on Friday passed a smoking ban for all indoor public places and offices, state media reported, despite the failure of past attempts to limit where the country's 300 million smokers can light up.
	Smoking rates halve since 1970s in Britain The number of smokers in Britain has more than halved in the past four decades, according to the latest figures.
	The palaeolithic diet and the unprovable links to our past We still hear and read a lot about how a diet based on what our Stone Age ancestors ate may be a cure-all for modern ills. But can we really run the clock backwards and find the optimal way to eat? It's a largely impossible dream based on a set of fallacies about our ancestors.
	Metals in local groceries may impact kids health A survey of metal concentrations in 253 food and beverages commonly eaten by Western Australians has turned up mixed results.
Brazil's Amazon region houses latex 'love factory' Deep in Amazonia, Raimundo Pereira expertly cuts a gash in a rubber tree to collect white sap destined for the nearby factory at Xapuri, the world's only producer of contraceptives made from tropical forest latex.
S. African disease lab on frontline of Ebola fight South African professor Janusz Paweska hesitates for a moment as he describes his work trip to the heart of the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone.
Understanding psychosis and schizophrenia A report published today by the British Psychological Society's Division of Clinical Psychology challenges received wisdom about the nature of mental illness.
	Real-time volume imaging of hearts A new ultrasound system from Siemens enables doctors to carry out heart examinations through the esophagus for the first time. The system supplies 3D images of the heart as well as additional real-time information about the blood flow throughout the heart. Moreover, these examinations can even be made in patients suffering from ECG irregularities. Surgeons could, for example, use the system to see whether heart valves are closing properly during the corrective procedure. Because a lot of computing power is needed to generate blood flow information in real time, it could previously only be done for small volumes. That's why the new solution, called Acuson SC2000 Prime Edition, has more computing power and an imaging ultrasound scan head that passes through the esophagus to create images of a large part of the heart with a single scan. Siemens presented the new system at this year's congress of the European Society of Cardiology.
Research examines relationship between domestic abuse and football A report, published today by the Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research (SCCJR), highlights a correlation between the occurrence of certain football matches and increased reports of domestic abuse.
Ebola scare boosts business for US company The Ebola scare has subsided in the United States, at least temporarily, but an Alabama manufacturer is still trying to catch up with a glut of orders for gear to protect against the disease.
Syria hit by flesh-eating maggot disease Three cases of myiasis have been reported near Damascus, marking the first appearance of the flesh-eating maggot disease in Syria, UN health experts said Friday.

Biology news

	Love at first smell: Can birds choose mates by their odors? Mate choice is often the most important decision in the lives of humans and animals. Scientists at the Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology at the Vetmeduni Vienna have found the first evidence that birds may choose their mate through odor. The researchers compared the preen gland chemicals of black-legged kittiwakes with genes that play a role in immunity. Kittiwakes that smell similarly to each other also have similar genes for immunity. Since the birds prefer to mate with unrelated mates, the scientists have now found the likely mechanism by which they recognize relatedness. The scientists published their findings in Nature's Scientific Reports.
	Male sex organ distinguishes 30 millipede species The unique shapes of male sex organs have helped describe thirty new millipede species from the Great Western Woodlands in the Goldfields, the largest area of relatively undisturbed Mediterranean climate woodlands in the world.
	Researchers collect soil samples from around the globe in effort to conduct fungi survey (Phys.org)—A large team of researchers with members from around the world has conducted a global survey of soil fungi by collecting thousands of soil samples from sites all around the world. In their paper published in the journal Science, the team describes their survey, how they performed DNA analysis on the specimens they found, and what they learned in doing so. David Wardle and Bjorn Lindahl of the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences offer a Perspectives piece on the work done by the team in the same journal issue.
	How can we avoid kelp beds turning into barren grounds? Urchins are marine invertebrates that mould the biological richness of marine grounds. However, an excessive proliferation of urchins may also have severe ecological consequences on marine grounds as they reduce algal cover and affect the survival of other marine species. To explore global dynamics and the factors that turn kelp beds into barren grounds is the main objective of a new study published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.
	Earliest stages of ear development involve a localized signaling cascade The proteins associated with driving the cell shape changes that internalize the embryonic inner ear have been identified by Raj Ladher and colleagues from the RIKEN Center for Developmental Biology. "Our hope," says Ladher, "is that by understanding the morphogenesis of the inner ear, clinicians will become more aware of what to look for in their diagnosis of otic developmental defects."
	Parasitic worm genomes: largest-ever dataset released The largest collection of helminth genomic data ever assembled has been published in the new, open-access WormBase-ParaSite. Developed jointly by EMBL-EBI and the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, this new resource will be a major asset in the fight against parasitic worms, which infect more than one billion people worldwide.

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