ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Tuesday, May 31, 2011 ~ techdeck

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Tuesday, May 31, 2011

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Defect in graphene may present bouquet of possibilities (May 31, 2011) -- A class of decorative, flower-like defects in the nanomaterial graphene could have potentially important effects on the material's already unique electrical and mechanical properties, according to researchers. ... > full story

Exotic behavior when mechanical devices reach the nanoscale (May 31, 2011) -- Mechanical resonators are extensively used in high-tech industry, to mark time in electronic components, and to stabilize radio transmissions. Most mechanical resonators damp (slow down) in a well-understood linear manner, but ground-breaking work has now shown that resonators formed from nanoscale graphene and carbon nanotubes exhibit nonlinear damping, opening up exciting possibilities for super-sensitive detectors of force or mass. ... > full story

Cover crop seeder pulls triple duty for small farms (May 31, 2011) -- Farmers using a cover crop seeder developed by agricultural scientists may eventually need only a single trip across the field to accomplish what takes most farmers three passes and several pieces of equipment to do. ... > full story

Graphene can polarize light: Researchers demonstrate world's thinnest polarizer (May 30, 2011) -- Graphene, an ultra-flat monolayer of carbon atoms in a hexagonal crystal lattice, has attracted a strong wave of research interest due to its unique electrical and photonic properties. Now, researchers have demonstrated the world's thinnest polarizer, which relies on the coupling, guiding and polarizing of electromagnetic waves by graphene. They claim that this breakthrough will someday allow the integration on all-photonic circuits for high-speed optical communications. ... > full story

Making complex composite materials to order (May 30, 2011) -- Scientists have found a way to make complex composite materials whose attributes can be fine-tuned to give various desirable combinations of properties such as stiffness, strength, resistance to impacts and energy dissipation. ... > full story

Flexible films for photovoltaics (May 30, 2011) -- Displays that can be rolled up and flexible solar cells -- both are potential future markets. Barrier layers that protect thin-film solar cells from oxygen and water vapor and thus increase their useful life are an essential component. ... > full story

Mars: Red planet's rapid formation explains its small size relative to Earth (May 30, 2011) -- Mars developed in as little as two to four million years after the birth of the solar system, far more quickly than Earth, according to a new study. The red planet's rapid formation helps explain why it is so small, say researchers. ... > full story

New synchrotron technique could see hidden building blocks of life (May 30, 2011) -- Scientists have developed a new synchrotron X-ray technique that may revolutionize the chemical analysis of rare materials like meteoric rock samples or fossils. ... > full story

Method for detecting toxic substances in leather and footwear developed (May 30, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a new analytical method that improves detection of the allergen dimethyl fumarate (DMFu) in leather and footwear. ... > full story

Biological circuits for synthetic biology (May 29, 2011) -- Using the tools of synthetic biology, researchers have engineered the first RNA-based regulatory system that can independently control the transcription activities of multiple targets in a single cell. This is a significant advance for the design and construction of programmable genetic networks. ... > full story

New software tool helps evaluate natural cooling options for buildings (May 29, 2011) -- A new, free software tool could prove to be a breath of fresh air for architects and designers of ventilation systems for "green" commercial buildings. ... > full story

Teasing apart galaxy collisions: Spitzer photo atlas of galactic 'train wrecks' (May 29, 2011) -- Five billion years from now, our Milky Way galaxy will collide with the Andromeda galaxy. This will mark a moment of both destruction and creation. The galaxies will lose their separate identities as they merge into one. At the same time, cosmic clouds of gas and dust will smash together, triggering the birth of new stars. To understand our past and imagine our future, we must understand what happens when galaxies collide. ... > full story

Stars help researchers track space junk (May 29, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a method to track the movement of geostationary objects using the position of the stars, which could help to monitor space debris. The technique can be used with small telescopes and in places that are not very dark. ... > full story

Dangerous side effect of common drug combination -- Paxil and Pravachol -- discovered by data mining (May 29, 2011) -- A widely used combination of two common medications may cause unexpected increases in blood glucose levels, according to a new study. Researchers were surprised at the finding because neither of the two drugs -- one, an antidepressant marketed as Paxil, and the other, a cholesterol-lowering medication called Pravachol -- has a similar effect alone. ... > full story

Scientists argue against conclusion that bacteria consumed Deepwater Horizon methane (May 29, 2011) -- New research casts doubt on a widely publicized study that concluded that a bacterial bloom in the Gulf of Mexico consumed the methane discharged from the Deepwater Horizon well. ... > full story

Better passwords get with the beat (May 29, 2011) -- No password is 100 percent secure. There are always ways and means for those with malicious intent to hack, crack or socially engineer access to a password. Indeed, there are more and more websites and databases compromised on a seemingly daily basis. A new approach to verifying passwords that also takes into account the speed with which a user types in their login and the gaps between characters would render a stolen password useless. ... > full story

Better viewing through fluorescent nanotubes when peering into innards of a mouse (May 28, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a way to see deeper -- and more clearly -- into bodily organs of laboratory mice used in studies of medications. Fluorescent carbon nanotubes, injected into the mice, provide clearer images. ... > full story

New hope of detecting gravitational waves: Final piece of Einstein's jigsaw puzzle (May 28, 2011) -- Direct evidence of the existence of gravitational waves is something that has long eluded researchers. However, new research has suggested that adding just one of the proposed detectors in Japan, Australia and India will drastically increase the expected rate of detection. ... > full story

Chameleon magnets: Ability to switch magnets 'on' or 'off' could revolutionize computing (May 28, 2011) -- What causes a magnet to be a magnet, and how can we control a magnet's behavior? These are the questions that researchers have been exploring over many years. ... > full story

Students struggling with math may have a neurocognitive disorder called dyscalculia: Disorder affects roughly as many people as dyslexia (May 28, 2011) -- Students who struggle to learn mathematics may have a neurocognitive disorder that inhibits the acquisition of basic numerical and arithmetic concepts, according to a new article. Specialized teaching for individuals with dyscalculia, the mathematical equivalent of dyslexia, should be made widely available in mainstream education, according to a new review. ... > full story

Physicists explain the long, useful lifetime of carbon-14 (May 28, 2011) -- Physicists have discovered the reasons behind the unexpectedly slow decay of carbon-14. That slow decay makes it possible for scientists to use carbon dating techniques to accurately date the relics of history. Understanding the decay of carbon-14 could also help researchers unravel other mysteries of matter. ... > full story

Astronomers unveil most complete 3-D map of local universe (May 27, 2011) -- Astronomers have unveiled the most complete 3-D map of the local universe (out to a distance of 380 million light-years) ever created. Taking more than 10 years to complete, the 2MASS Redshift Survey (2MRS) also is notable for extending closer to the Galactic plane than previous surveys -- a region that's generally obscured by dust. ... > full story

New procedure to make brain surgery safer (May 27, 2011) -- To increase patient safety in clinical practice and minimize risks and damage that may arise during surgery, computer support and digital medical imaging are key technologies. Before brain operations, neurosurgeons can now evaluate patient-specific surgical risks, achieve increased safety, and avoid unacceptable risks. ... > full story

Spitzer sees crystal 'rain' in outer clouds of infant star (May 27, 2011) -- Tiny crystals of a green mineral called olivine are falling down like rain on a burgeoning star, according to observations from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. This is the first time such crystals have been observed in the dusty clouds of gas that collapse around forming stars. Astronomers are still debating how the crystals got there, but the most likely culprits are jets of gas blasting away from the embryonic star. ... > full story

Green and lean: Secreting bacteria eliminate cost barriers for renewable biofuel production (May 27, 2011) -- Scientists have developed a process that removes a key obstacle to producing low-cost, renewable biofuels from bacteria. The team has reprogrammed photosynthetic microbes to secrete high-energy fats, making byproduct recovery and conversion to biofuels easier and potentially more commercially viable. ... > full story

Rendezvous with an asteroid: NASA to launch new science mission to near-Earth asteroid in 2016 (May 27, 2011) -- NASA will launch a spacecraft to an asteroid in 2016 and use a robotic arm to pluck samples that could better explain our solar system's formation and how life began. The mission, called Origins-Spectral Interpretation-Resource Identification-Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx, will be the first U.S. mission to carry samples from an asteroid back to Earth. ... > full story

Improving DNA sequencing: Sponge-like biosensor crams enormous power into tiny space (May 27, 2011) -- Engineers have created a "spongy" silicon biosensor that shows promise not only for medical diagnostics, but also for the detection of dangerous toxins and other tiny molecules in the environment. This innovation was originally designed to detect the presence of particular DNA sequences, which can be extremely helpful in identifying a person's predisposition to heart disease or cancer. ... > full story

Nanoengineers invent new biomaterial that more closely mimics human tissue (May 27, 2011) -- A new biomaterial designed for repairing damaged human tissue doesn't wrinkle up when it is stretched. The invention from nanoengineers marks a significant breakthrough in tissue engineering because it more closely mimics the properties of native human tissue. ... > full story

New nanoscale imaging may lead to new treatments for multiple sclerosis (May 27, 2011) -- Laboratory studies by chemical engineers may lead to new experimental methods for early detection and diagnosis -- and to possible treatments -- for pathological tissues that are precursors to multiple sclerosis and similar diseases. ... > full story

NASA is making hot 'way cool' (May 27, 2011) -- Called electrohydrodynamic (EHD)-based thermal control, the technology promises to make it easier and more efficient to remove heat from small spaces -- a particular challenge for engineers building advanced space instruments and microprocessors that could fail if the heat they generate is not removed. ... > full story

Nuclear radiation affects sex of babies, study suggests (May 27, 2011) -- Ionizing radiation is not without danger to human populations. Indeed, exposure to nuclear radiation leads to an increase in male births relative to female births, according to a new study by researchers in Germany. Their work shows that radiation from atomic bomb testing before the Partial Test Ban Treaty in 1963, the Chernobyl accident, and from living near nuclear facilities, has had a long-term negative effect on the ratio of male to female human births (sex odds). ... > full story

Matter-matter entanglement at a distance: Quantum mechanical entanglement of two remote quantum systems (May 27, 2011) -- Because of its strange consequences, the quantum mechanical phenomenon of entanglement has been called “spooky action at a distance” by Albert Einstein. For several years, physicists have been developing concepts of how to use this phenomenon for practical applications such as absolutely safe data transmission. For this purpose, the entanglement which is generated in a local process has to be distributed among remote quantum systems. A team of scientists in Germany has now demonstrated that two remote atomic quantum systems can be prepared in a shared “entangled” state: one system is a single atom trapped in an optical resonator, the other one a Bose-Einstein condensate consisting of hundreds of thousands of ultracold atoms. With the hybrid system thus generated, the researchers have realized a fundamental building block of a quantum network. ... > full story

NASA's Hubble finds rare 'blue straggler' stars in the Milky Way's hub (May 27, 2011) -- NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has found a rare class of oddball stars called blue stragglers in the hub of our Milky Way, the first detected within our galaxy's bulge. ... > full story

Superior sound for telephones, mobile and related devices (May 27, 2011) -- Telephone calls and video conferences with a sound quality that approaches that of direct communication are now possible with a new audio coding technology - it is almost as if the discussion participants are sitting across from one another. ... > full story

NASA's WISE mission offers a taste of galaxies to come (May 26, 2011) -- An assorted mix of colorful galaxies is being released by NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission, or WISE. The nine galaxies are a taste of what's to come. The mission plans to release similar images for the 1,000 largest galaxies that appear in our sky, and possibly more. ... > full story

Testing material hardness and strength: Butter up the old 'scratch test' to make it tough (May 26, 2011) -- It might not seem like scraping the top of a cold stick of butter with a knife could be a scientific test, but engineers say the process is very similar to the "scratch test," which is perhaps the oldest known way to assess a material's hardness and strength. Using butter as a launching point, they found that the scratch test is actually measuring a material's toughness rather than its strength. ... > full story

The quantum computer is growing up: Repetitive error correction in a quantum processor (May 26, 2011) -- Physicists have demonstrated a crucial element for a future functioning quantum computer: repetitive error correction. This allows scientists to correct errors occurring in a quantum computer efficiently. ... > full story

Scientists detect Earth-equivalent amount of water within the moon (May 26, 2011) -- The moon has much more water than previously thought, a scientific team has discovered. First-time measurements of lunar melt inclusions show that some parts of the lunar mantle have as much water as the Earth's upper mantle. The results may change the prevailing theory about the Moon's origin as well as shed new light on the origin of water at the lunar poles. Results appear in Science Express. ... > full story

Children experience wrist and finger pain when using gaming devices and mobile phones over time, study suggests (May 26, 2011) -- For the first time, results on the impact of gaming devices on finger and wrist pain in children were presented. Data comparing two schools in the USA demonstrate that young children experience high levels of pain following long term use of gaming devices and mobile phones indicating that excessive gaming may negatively impact on joint health. ... > full story

'Guide vests': Robotic navigation aids for the visually impaired (May 26, 2011) -- Researchers are developing a robot vision-based mobility aid for the visually impaired that uses head-carried cameras linked to Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) software to build maps of the environment and identify a safe path through obstacles. The information is conveyed to the user through a guide vest that includes four micro motors located on an individual's shoulder and waist that vibrate like cell phones. ... > full story

Feuding helium dwarf stars exposed by eclipse (May 26, 2011) -- Researchers have found a unique feuding double white dwarf star system where each star appears to have been stripped down to just its helium. ... > full story

Quantum sensor tracked in human cells could aid drug discovery (May 26, 2011) -- Groundbreaking research has shown a quantum atom has been tracked inside a living human cell and may lead to improvements in the testing and development of new drugs. ... > full story

Teaching algae to make fuel: New process could lead to production of hydrogen using bioengineered microorganisms (May 26, 2011) -- Many kinds of algae and cyanobacteria, common water-dwelling microorganisms, are capable of using energy from sunlight to split water molecules and release hydrogen, which holds promise as a clean and carbon-free fuel for the future. One reason this approach hasn't yet been harnessed for fuel production is that under ordinary circumstances, hydrogen production takes a back seat to the production of compounds that the organisms use to support their own growth. ... > full story

Intuitions regarding geometry are universal, study suggests (May 26, 2011) -- All human beings may have the ability to understand elementary geometry, independently of their culture or their level of education. In a spherical universe, researchers found that Amazonian Indians gave better answers than French or North American participants who, by virtue of learning geometry at school, acquire greater familiarity with planar geometry than with spherical geometry. ... > full story

Biomedical imaging: Ultrasound guide star and time-reversal mirror can focus light deep under the skin (May 26, 2011) -- Focusing light into a scattering medium such as tissue has been a dream since the beginning of biomedical optics. Previous techniques allowed light to be focused only within a millimeter of the skin. Now a scientist has invented a technique called TRUE that uses an ultrasound guide star to allow scattered optical light be focused deep within tissue. ... > full story

Carrying humans into deep space: NASA announces key decision for next deep space transportation system (May 26, 2011) -- NASA has reached an important milestone for the next U.S. transportation system that will carry humans into deep space. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden announced May 25, 2011 that the system will be based on designs originally planned for the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle. Those plans now will be used to develop a new spacecraft known as the Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV). ... > full story

Violent video games reduce brain response to violence and increase aggressive behavior, study suggests (May 26, 2011) -- Scientists have known for years that playing violent video games causes players to become more aggressive. The findings of a new study provide one explanation for why this occurs: the brains of violent video game players become less responsive to violence, and this diminished brain response predicts an increase in aggression. ... > full story

Five new hot spots where medicine and technology will converge (May 26, 2011) -- Medicine and technology are converging in patient care at a faster pace than most people realize. Space age advancements from point-of-care health technologies like telemedicine to medical robots performing surgery are fast becoming commonplace in many hospitals. What's next? ... > full story

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