The EDGE: ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Tuesday, June 5, 2012

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Tuesday, June 5, 2012

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The mysterious arc of Venus (June 4, 2012) -- When Venus transits the sun on June 5-6, an armada of spacecraft and ground-based telescopes will be on the lookout for something elusive and, until recently, unexpected: the arc of Venus. ... > full story

RHESSI will use Venus transit to improve measurements of the sun's diameter (June 4, 2012) -- With the new data obtained during the Venus transit on June 5-6, 2012, the RHESSI team hopes to improve the knowledge of the exact shape of the sun and provide a more accurate measure of the diameter than has previously been obtained. ... > full story

Zeroing in on the best shape for cancer-fighting nanoparticles (June 4, 2012) -- A pair of new articles suggests that cancer-fighting nanoparticles ought to be disc-shaped, not spherical or rod-shaped, when targeting cancers at or near blood vessels. ... > full story

Physicists close in on a rare particle-decay process: Underground experiment may unlock mysteries of the neutrino (June 4, 2012) -- In the biggest result of its kind in more than ten years, physicists have made the most sensitive measurements yet in a decades-long hunt for a hypothetical and rare process involving the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. If discovered, the researchers say, this process could have profound implications for how scientists understand the fundamental laws of physics and help solve some of the universe's biggest mysteries. ... > full story

Giant black hole kicked out of home galaxy (June 4, 2012) -- Astronomers have found strong evidence that a massive black hole is being ejected from its host galaxy at a speed of several million miles per hour. New observations suggest that the black hole collided and merged with another black hole and received a powerful recoil kick from gravitational wave radiation. ... > full story

Ancient jugs hold the secret to practical mathematics in Biblical times (June 4, 2012) -- Archaeologists and mathematicians alike have been puzzled for centuries by the use of spherical jugs in trade in the ancient world, and how merchants measured the volume of the commodities they held. Now researchers have revealed that these ancient cultures had their own unique means of measurement, accurate enough for business and other uses. ... > full story

Flexible channel width improves user experience on wireless systems (June 4, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a technique to efficiently divide the bandwidth of the wireless spectrum in multi-hop wireless networks to improve operation and provide all users in the network with the best possible performance. ... > full story

Artificial muscle as shock absorber: Dampen annoying vibrations in a car or supply wireless power (June 4, 2012) -- Engineers are working on intelligent materials that can diminish vibrations and extract power from the environment. These electro-active elastomers could dampen annoying vibrations in a car, for example, or supply wireless power to sensors in otherwise inaccessible places. ... > full story

Repelling the drop on top (June 4, 2012) -- It would make life a lot easier if the surfaces of window panes, corrosion coatings or microfluidic systems in medical labs could keep themselves free of water and other liquids. A new simulation program can now work out just how such surfaces have to look for a variety of applications. ... > full story

Filming life in the fast lane (June 4, 2012) -- A new microscope enabled scientists to film a fruit fly embryo, in 3D, from when it was about two-and-a-half hours old until it walked away from the microscope as a larva. ... > full story

Molecular algebra in mammalian cells (June 4, 2012) -- Researchers have reprogrammed mammalian cells in such a way as to perform logical calculations like a pocket calculator. The cells owe this ability to one of the most complex gene networks that has ever been incorporated into a higher cell. ... > full story

Search engine for social networks based on the behavior of ants (June 4, 2012) -- Researchers are developing an algorithm, based on ants’ behavior when they are searching for food, which accelerates the search for relationships among elements that are present in social networks. One of the main technical questions in the field of social networks, whose use is becoming more and more generalized, consists in locating the chain of reference that leads from one person to another, from one node to another. The greatest challenges that are presented in this area is the enormous size of these networks and the fact that the response must be rapid. ... > full story

Powerful new tool for research and drug development (June 4, 2012) -- Scientists have harnessed bioinformatics and molecular biology to create powerful software that promises to become a “must have” tool in drug development research labs the world over. The software is used to analyze kinases – a type of enzyme involved in virtually every cellular function, from energy use and reproduction to modifying gene expression. ... > full story

New statistical model lets patient's past forecast future ailments (June 4, 2012) -- Analyzing medical records from thousands of patients, statisticians have devised a statistical model for predicting what other medical problems a patient might encounter. ... > full story

Expanding the genetic alphabet may be easier than previously thought (June 3, 2012) -- A new study suggests that the replication process for DNA -- the genetic instructions for living organisms that is composed of four bases (C, G, A and T) -- is more open to unnatural letters than had previously been thought. An expanded "DNA alphabet" could carry more information than natural DNA, potentially coding for a much wider range of molecules and enabling a variety of powerful applications, from precise molecular probes and nanomachines to useful new life forms. ... > full story

US and European energy supplies vulnerable to climate change (June 3, 2012) -- Higher water temperatures and reduced river flows in Europe and the United States in recent years have resulted in reduced production, or temporary shutdown, of several thermoelectric power plants, resulting in increased electricity prices and raising concerns about future energy security in a changing climate. A new study projects further disruption to supply, with a likely decrease in thermoelectric power generating capacity of between 6-19% in Europe and 4-16% in the United States for the period 2031-2060, due to lack of cooling water. ... > full story

Computer-designed proteins programmed to disarm variety of flu viruses (June 1, 2012) -- Proteins found in nature, but that do not normally bind the flu, can be engineered to act as broad-spectrum antiviral agents against many flu virus strains, including H1N1 pandemic influenza. One engineered protein has a flu-fighting potency that rivals several monoclonal antibodies. The proteins are constructed via computer modeling to fit neatly onto a nano-sized target on flu viruses, and prevent that part of the virus from changing shape to infect cells. ... > full story

Venus Transit: June 5-6, 2012 (June 1, 2012) -- On June 5, 2012, at 6:03 PM EDT, the planet Venus will do something it has done only seven times since the invention of the telescope: cross in front of the sun. This transit is among the rarest of planetary alignments and it has an odd cycle. Two such Venus transits always occur within eight years of each other and then there is a break of either 105 or 121 years before it happens again. ... > full story

Northern Lights process like untangling twisted strands of spaghetti? (June 1, 2012) -- Scientists have reached a milestone in describing how the northern lights work by way of a process called "magnetic reconnection." The process is best imagined as untangling twisted strands of spaghetti. ... > full story

Skeleton key: Diverse complex networks have similar skeletons (June 1, 2012) -- Researchers have discovered that very different complex networks -- ranging from global air traffic to neural networks -- share very similar backbones. By stripping each network down to its essential nodes and links, they found each network possesses a skeleton and these skeletons share common features, much like vertebrates do. The findings could be particularly useful in understanding how something -- a disease, a rumor or information -- spreads across a network. ... > full story

Prototype device translates sign language (June 1, 2012) -- The hearing impaired may soon have an easier time communicating with those who do not understand sign language due to a new device. During the past semester, students in engineering technology and industrial design programs teamed up to develop the concept and prototype for MyVoice, a device that reads sign language and translates its motions into audible words. ... > full story

Venus: Planetary portrait of inner beauty (June 1, 2012) -- A Venus transit across the face of the sun is a relatively rare event -- occurring in pairs with more than a century separating each pair. There have been all of 53 transits of Venus across the sun between 2000 B.C. and the last one in 2004. On Wednesday, June 6 (Tuesday, June 5 from the Western Hemisphere), Earth gets another shot at it -- and the last for a good long while. But beyond this uniquely celestial oddity, why has Venus been an object worthy of ogling for hundreds of centuries? ... > full story

Saturn's geyser moon Enceladus provides a new kind of plasma laboratory (June 1, 2012) -- Recent findings from NASA's Cassini mission reveal that Saturn's geyser moon Enceladus provides a special laboratory for watching unusual behavior of plasma, or hot ionized gas. In these recent findings, some Cassini scientists think they have observed "dusty plasma," a condition theorized but not previously observed on site, near Enceladus. Data from Cassini's fields and particles instruments also show that the usual "heavy" and "light" species of charged particles in normal plasma are actually reversed near the plume spraying from the moon's south polar region. ... > full story

New compound could become 'cool blue' for energy efficiency in buildings (June 1, 2012) -- A new type of durable, environmentally-benign blue pigment has also been found to have unusual characteristics in reflecting heat -- it's a "cool blue" compound that could become important in new approaches to saving energy in buildings. ... > full story

Unique approach to materials allows temperature-stable circuits (June 1, 2012) -- Scientists have developed a unique materials approach to multilayered, ceramic-based, 3-D microelectronics circuits, such as those used in cell phones. The approach compensates for how changes due to temperature fluctuations affect something called the temperature coefficient of resonant frequency, a critical property of materials used in radio and microwave frequency applications. ... > full story

Quantum computers will be able to simulate particle collisions (June 1, 2012) -- Quantum computers are still years away, but a trio of theoretical physicists can already make the claim "there's an app for that." The theorists have developed a mathematical algorithm that will be used by a future quantum computer to study the inner workings of the universe in ways that are far beyond the reach of even the most powerful conventional supercomputers. ... > full story

Astronomers discover faintest distant galaxy (June 1, 2012) -- Astronomers have found an exceptionally distant galaxy, ranked among the top 10 most distant objects currently known in space. Light from the recently detected galaxy left the object about 800 million years after the beginning of the universe, when the universe was in its infancy. The team of astronomers identified the remote galaxy after scanning a moon-sized patch of sky with an instrument on the Magellan Telescopes at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. ... > full story

Integrated sensors handle extreme conditions (June 1, 2012) -- Engineers have designed and fabricated integrated amplifier circuits that operate under extreme temperatures -- up to 600 degrees Celsius. The silicon carbide amplifiers have applications in both aerospace and energy industries. ... > full story

Silkmoth inspires novel explosive detector (June 1, 2012) -- Imitating the antennas of the silkmoth, Bombyx mori, researchers have designed a system for detecting explosives with unparalleled performance. Made up of a silicon microcantilever bearing nearly 500,000 aligned titanium dioxide nanotubes, this device is capable of detecting concentrations of trinitrotoluene (TNT) of around 800 ppq (1) (i.e. 800 molecules of explosive per 10^15 molecules of air), thereby improving one thousand-fold the detection limit attainable until now. This innovative concept could also be used to detect drugs, toxic agents and traces of organic pollutants. ... > full story

Catching solar particles infiltrating Earth's atmosphere (May 31, 2012) -- On May 17, 2012, an M-class flare exploded from the sun. They caused a shower of particles to cascade down toward Earth's surface. The shower created what's called a ground level enhancement (GLE). ... > full story

X-ray 'echoes' map a supermassive black hole's environs in distant galaxies (May 31, 2012) -- Astronomers have identified a long-sought X-ray "echo" that promises a new way to probe supersized black holes in distant galaxies. ... > full story

Nanotechnology breakthrough could dramatically improve medical tests (May 31, 2012) -- A laboratory test used to detect disease and perform biological research could be made more than 3 million times more sensitive, according to researchers who combined standard biological tools with a breakthrough in nanotechnology. ... > full story

New small solid oxide fuel cell reaches record efficiency (May 31, 2012) -- A new solid oxide fuel cell system can achieve a record of up to 57 percent efficiency and is designed to be scaled up to generate electricity for individual homes or neighborhoods. ... > full story

Slingshot-driven device stops high-velocity projectiles without destroying them (May 31, 2012) -- What do you get when you combine a slingshot, a fish tank, a stack of 2-by-4s and five engineering students determined to help the United States Air Force? A device to stop high-velocity projectiles without destroying them. ... > full story

Cosmic calculations for exploring where stars are born (May 31, 2012) -- Astrophysicists can now analyze the vast molecular clouds of gas and dust where stars are born more accurately. New research has solved equations of quantum mechanics to describe more precisely the interactions between molecules of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, the two most abundant gases in space. ... > full story

Predicting burglary patterns through math modeling of crime (May 31, 2012) -- Pattern formation in physical, biological, and sociological systems has been studied for many years. One area where it has been of growing interest is in crime modeling. ... > full story

X-ray laser probes biomolecules to individual atoms (May 31, 2012) -- Scientists have demonstrated how the world's most powerful X-ray laser can assist in cracking the structures of biomolecules, and in the processes helped to pioneer critical new investigative avenues in biology. ... > full story

Building molecular 'cages' to fight disease (May 31, 2012) -- Biochemists have designed specialized proteins that assemble themselves to form tiny molecular cages hundreds of times smaller than a single cell. The creation of these miniature structures may be the first step toward developing new methods of drug delivery or even designing artificial vaccines. ... > full story

New tool to attack the mysteries of high-temperature superconductivity (May 31, 2012) -- Using ultrafast lasers, scientists have tackled the long-standing mystery of how Cooper pairs form in high-temperature superconductors. With pump and probe pulses spaced just trillionths of a second apart, the researchers used photoemission spectroscopy to map rapid changes in electronic states across the superconducting transition, revealing relationships of energy and momentum never seen before in these promising, but stubborn, complex materials. ... > full story

Finding good music in noisy online markets (May 31, 2012) -- Researchers have analyzed data on 14,000 users of a music-sharing site and have concluded that, while social-media marketing -- getting lots of "likes" on Facebook, for instance -- can drive users to listen to excerpts from new songs, it has a negligible effect on their purchases. ... > full story

Crash of the Titans: Milky Way is destined for head-on collision with Andromeda Galaxy (May 31, 2012) -- Astronomers 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. The Milky Way is destined to get a major makeover during the encounter, which is predicted to happen four billion years from now. It's likely the Sun will be flung into a new region of our galaxy, but our Earth and solar system are in no danger of being destroyed. ... > full story

NASA preparing to launch its newest X-ray eyes (May 31, 2012) -- 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. ... > full story

SpaceX Dragon capsule returns to Earth after first commercial flight to space station (May 31, 2012) -- SpaceX's Dragon capsule splashed down in the Pacific Ocean at 11:42 a.m. EDT a few hundred miles west of Baja California, Mexico, marking a successful end to the first mission by a commercial company to resupply the International Space Station. ... > full story

New device warns workers of high levels of airborne metals in minutes rather than weeks (May 31, 2012) -- Scientists are reporting development of a new paper-based device that can warn workers that they are being exposed to potentially unhealthy levels of airborne metals almost immediately, instead of the weeks required with current technology. The device costs about one cent to make and could prevent illness in the millions of people who work with metal. ... > full story

ALMA Turns its Eyes to Centaurus A (May 31, 2012) -- A new image of the center of the distinctive galaxy Centaurus A shows how the new observatory allows astronomers to see through the opaque dust lanes that obscure the galaxy’s center, with unprecedented quality. ... > full story

Methane on Mars is not an indication of life: UV radiation releases methane from organic materials from meteorites (May 31, 2012) -- It was a sensation when scientists discovered methane in Mars’ atmosphere nine years ago. Many saw the presence of the gas as a clear indication of life on the inhospitable planet, as on Earth methane is produced predominantly by biological processes. Others assumed geological processes, such as volcanoes, to be the cause. Researchers have now been able to show that methane escapes from a meteorite if it is irradiated with ultraviolet light under Martian conditions. ... > full story

Electric moon jolts the solar wind (May 31, 2012) -- With the moon as the most prominent object in the night sky and a major source of an invisible pull that creates ocean tides, many ancient cultures thought it could also affect our health or state of mind -- the word "lunacy" has its origin in this belief. Now, a powerful combination of spacecraft and computer simulations is revealing that the moon does indeed have a far-reaching, invisible influence -- not on us, but on the Sun, or more specifically, the solar wind. ... > full story

New type of biosensor is fast, super-sensitive (May 31, 2012) -- A whole new class of biosensor that can detect exceptionally small traces of contaminants in liquids in just 40 minutes has now been developed. Known as a biochemiresistor, it meets a long-standing challenge to create a sensor that is not only super-sensitive to the presence of chemical compounds but responds quickly. It has countless potential uses for detecting drugs, toxins and pesticides for biomedical or environmental analysis. ... > full story