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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 22:
Soviet find of water on the Moon in the 1970s ignored by the West
(Phys.org) -- In August 1976 Luna 24 landed on the moon and returned to Earth with samples of rocks, which were found to contain water, but this finding was ignored by scientists in the West.
Teenager reportedly finds solution to 350 year old math and physics problem
(Phys.org) -- In Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica published in 1687, the man many consider the most brilliant mathematician of all time used a mathematical formula to describe the path taken by an object when it is thrown through the air from one point to the next, i.e. an arc based on several factors such as the angle it is thrown at, velocity, etc. At the time, Newton explained that to get it completely right though, air resistance would need to be taken into account, though he could not figure out himself how to factor that in. Now, it appears a 16 year old immigrant to Germany has done just that, and to top off his work, he’s also apparently come up with an equation that describes the motion of an object when it strikes an immobile surface such as a wall, and bounces back.
New small solid oxide fuel cell reaches record efficiency
Individual homes and entire neighborhoods could be powered with a new, small-scale solid oxide fuel cell system that achieves up to 57 percent efficiency, significantly higher than the 30 to 50 percent efficiencies previously reported for other solid oxide fuel cell systems of its size, according to a study published in this month's issue of Journal of Power Sources.
Global wave of Flame cyber attacks called staggering
(Phys.org) -- Kaspersky Lab has discovered complex malware that has been in operation for at least five years, collecting data from countries including both Israel and Iran. Kaspersky experts think the masterminds are state-sponsored but have come short of short of naming exact origins. The malicious program is detected as Worm.Win32.Flame by Kaspersky Lab’s security products. The UN International Telecommunication Union has worked with Kaspersky Lab in the investigation, which finds that individuals, businesses, academic institutions and government systems have been hit. The total number of targets is an estimated 600.
Hubble shows Milky Way is destined for head-on collision with Andromeda galaxy
(Phys.org) -- NASA astronomers announced Thursday they can now predict with certainty the next major cosmic event to affect our galaxy, sun, and solar system: the titanic collision of our Milky Way galaxy with the neighboring Andromeda galaxy.
Researchers find new properties of the carbon material graphene
Graphene has caused a lot of excitement among scientists since the extremely strong and thin carbon material was discovered in 2004. Just one atom thick, the honeycomb-shaped material has several remarkable properties combining mechanical toughness with superior electrical and thermal conductivity.
Researchers conclude that climate change led to collapse of ancient Indus civilization
A new study combining the latest archaeological evidence with state-of-the-art geoscience technologies provides evidence that climate change was a key ingredient in the collapse of the great Indus or Harappan Civilization almost 4000 years ago. The study also resolves a long-standing debate over the source and fate of the Sarasvati, the sacred river of Hindu mythology.
High-temperature superconductivity starts at nanoscale
(Phys.org) -- High-temperature superconductivity doesn't happen all it once. It starts in isolated nanoscale patches that gradually expand until they take over.
Researchers restore walking ability after spinal cord injury in rats
Rats with spinal cord injuries and severe paralysis are now walking (and running) thanks to researchers at EPFL. Published in the June 1, 2012 issue of Science, the results show that a severed section of the spinal cord can make a comeback when its own innate intelligence and regenerative capacity—what lead author Grégoire Courtine of EPFL calls the "spinal brain"—is awakened. The study, begun five years ago at the University of Zurich, points to a profound change in our understanding of the central nervous system. It is yet unclear if similar rehabilitation techniques could work for humans, but the observed nerve growth hints at new methods for treating paralysis.
Discovery of historical photos sheds light on Greenland ice loss
A chance discovery of 80-year-old photo plates in a Danish basement is providing new insight into how Greenland glaciers are melting today.
11.5 billion years old: Stellar archaeology traces Milky Way's history
(Phys.org) -- Unfortunately, stars don't have birth certificates. So, astronomers have a tough time figuring out their ages. Knowing a star's age is critical for understanding how our Milky Way galaxy built itself up over billions of years from smaller galaxies.
SpaceX Dragon capsule splash lands in Pacific
US company SpaceX's cargo vessel Thursday splash landed in the Pacific Ocean, capping a successful mission to the International Space Station that blazed a new path for private spaceflight.
Greenhouse gas levels hit 'troubling milestone'
(AP) — The world's air has reached what scientists call a troubling new milestone for carbon dioxide, the main global warming pollutant.
Depleted uranium: could this reduce our dependency on crude oil?
(Phys.org) -- A simple three-step chemical reaction which could herald the introduction of new sustainable feedstocks for the chemical industry has been developed by scientists at The University of Nottingham.
Irish mathematicians explain why Guinness bubbles sink (w/ video)
(Phys.org) -- Why do the bubbles in a glass of stout beer such as Guinness sink while the beer is settling, even though the bubbles are lighter than the surrounding liquid? That’s been a puzzling question until now, as a team of mathematicians from the University of Limerick has shown that the sinking bubbles result from the shape of a pint glass, which narrows downwards and causes a circulation pattern that drives both fluid and bubbles downwards at the wall of the glass. So it’s not just the bubbles themselves that are sinking (in fact, they're still trying to rise), but the entire fluid is sinking and pulling the bubbles down with it.
European team bests Chinese record at teleporting distance (Corrected)
(Phys.org) -- A European team of physicists has bested the record set by a team of Chinese researchers last month for distance in teleporting quantum bits (qubits). Where the Chinese team accomplished their feat by teleporting photons across a lake, the European team did so by performing the same feat across the ocean between two islands off the coast of Africa. It was apparently no easy feat as the team describes in the paper they’ve written and uploaded to the preprint server arXiv; they had so much foul weather to contend with that their experiment took nearly a year to complete. The record breaking distance by the Chinese team was close to 100 kilometers. The Europeans bested that mark by almost fifty kilometers, setting up a possible rivalry between the two teams to see which might be the first to successfully teleport a qubit to an orbiting satellite.
Germany sets weekend record for solar power
(Phys.org) -- Solar power plants in Germany have set a new record. “Never before anywhere has a country produced as much photovoltaic electricity," said Norbert Allnoch, Germany’s director of the Institute of the Renewable Energy Industry in Muenster. The plants peaked at 22 gigawatts of output for a few hours over the weekend, on Friday and Saturday. The numbers are important in that they yielded almost half the country's energy mid-day electricity needs. The 22 gigawatts is up from 14 GW a year ago. Also, this 22 gigawatts of output is equal to about 20 nuclear plants.
NASA preparing to launch NuSTAR, its newest X-ray eyes
(Phys.org) -- NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, is being prepared for the final journey to its launch pad on Kwajalein Atoll in the central Pacific Ocean. The mission will study everything from massive black holes to our own sun. It is scheduled to launch no earlier than June 13.
US rejects proposal to put Internet under UN control
US officials, lawmakers and technology leaders voiced firm opposition Thursday to efforts to bring the Internet under UN control, saying it could hurt free expression and commerce.
Science journal offers up essays on 8 mysteries in astronomy
(Phys.org) -- Because astronomy and astrophysics are still so much a mixture of theory, conjecture and generally difficult to measure phenomenon, at least as compared with many of the other sciences, one of the most highly respected science journals, Science, has chosen to run a series of articles detailing eight of what it deems the most compelling questions currently vexing those who study the cosmos; each written by someone uniquely qualified to delve into the subject matter at hand.
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