ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Thursday, August 18, 2011 ~ techdeck

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Thursday, August 18, 2011

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Researchers find way to align gold nanorods on a large scale (August 18, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a simple, scalable way to align gold nanorods, particles with optical properties that could be used for emerging biomedical imaging technologies. ... > full story

Near-infrared imaging system shows promise as future pancreatic cancer diagnostic tool (August 18, 2011) -- Researchers have demonstrated for the first time that optical coherence tomography (OCT), a high resolution optical imaging technique that works by bouncing near-infrared laser light off biological tissue, can reliably distinguish between pancreatic cysts that are low-risk and high-risk for becoming malignant. ... > full story

Physicists undo the 'coffee ring effect' (August 17, 2011) -- A team of physicists has shown how to disrupt the "coffee ring effect" -- the ring-shaped stain of particles leftover after coffee drops evaporate -- by changing the particle shape. The discovery provides new tools for engineers to deposit uniform coatings. ... > full story

Robotic refueling module, soon to be relocated to permanent space station position (August 17, 2011) -- NASA's groundbreaking Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) will reach a key milestone in September when the International Space Station (ISS) robots transfer the module to its permanent home on space station's ExPRESS Logistics Carrier-4. Robotic operations for the technology demonstration are currently slated to begin soon afterwards. ... > full story

Can stock markets regulate themselves? History of markets offers insight into effects of regulation on success of initial public offerings (August 17, 2011) -- Whenever crisis threatens the financial markets, voices are loud in calling for greater control. It is dubious, however, whether tighter regulation would actually offer investors better protection against losing their capital, economists argue in a new historical review of the markets. ... > full story

Reliability issues for carbon nanotubes in future electronics uncovered (August 17, 2011) -- Carbon nanotubes theoretically can carry 1,000 times more electric current than a metal conductor of the same size, so researchers hope they might replace copper wiring in future nanoscale electronics, but recent tests suggest device reliability is a major issue. ... > full story

Wind-turbine placement produces tenfold power increase, researchers say (August 17, 2011) -- The power output of wind farms can be increased at least tenfold simply by optimizing the placement of turbines on a given plot of land, say researchers conducting a unique field study at an experimental two-acre wind farm in northern Los Angeles County, California. ... > full story

New tool allows first responders to visualize post-event disaster environments (August 17, 2011) -- Using iPad™ mobile devices, emergency preparedness officials and first responders participating in an exercise, were able, for the first time, to make use of a new, science-based software tool that allows them to view and modify accurate models of building damage and other post-event disaster effects. ... > full story

Researchers improving GPS accuracy in the third dimension (August 17, 2011) -- Researchers who are working to fix global positioning system (GPS) errors have devised software to take a more accurate measurement of altitude -- particularly in mountainous areas. The software is still under development, but in initial tests it enabled centimeter-scale GPS positioning -- including altitude -- as often as 97 percent of the time. ... > full story

Phone losing charge? With photovoltaic polarizers, devices could be powered by sunlight, own backlight (August 17, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a novel energy harvesting and recycling concept for electronic devices -- incorporating their LCD screens with built-in photovoltaic polarizers -- so they could convert ambient light, sunlight, and the device's own backlight into electricity. Called polarizing organic photovoltaics (or ZOPVs), these can potentially boost the function of a LCD, Light Crystal Displays, by working simultaneously as a polarizer, as a photovoltaic device and as an ambient light or sunlight photovoltaic panel. ... > full story

A new look below the surface of nanomaterials (August 17, 2011) -- Scientists can now look deeper into new materials to study their structure and behavior. A new technique will enable more detailed study of new types of materials for use in electronics, energy production, chemistry and other applications. ... > full story

Holograms reveal brain's inner workings: Microscopy technique used to observe activity of neurons like never before (August 17, 2011) -- Like far away galaxies, powerful tools are required to bring the minute inner workings of neurons into focus. Borrowing a technique from materials science, a team of neurobiologists, psychiatrists, and advanced imaging specialists from Switzerland report how digital holographic microscopy can now be used to observe neuronal activity in real-time and in three dimensions -- with up to 50 times greater resolution than ever before. ... > full story

Mimicking biological complexity, in a tiny particle (August 17, 2011) -- Tiny particles made of polymers hold great promise for targeted delivery of drugs and as structural scaffolds for building artificial tissues. However, current production methods for such microparticles yield a limited array of shapes and can only be made with certain materials, restricting their usefulness. New technology could lead to better drug delivery and artificial tissues that imitate natural tissue. ... > full story

Gemini-Scout robot likely to reach trapped miners ahead of rescuers (August 17, 2011) -- Robotics engineers have designed the Gemini-Scout Mine Rescue Robot, which finds dangers and can provide relief to trapped miners. ... > full story

Cosmological evolution of dark matter is similar to that of visible matter (August 17, 2011) -- Large cosmic structures made up of dark and normal matter evolve along the same lines -- this is one of the most important conclusions emerging from the latest computer simulations. ... > full story

Diamond’s quantum memory (August 17, 2011) -- Two completely different quantum systems have been successfully joined. This should pave the way to feasible quantum-computer microchips. ... > full story

Scientists find new uses for existing drugs by mining gene-activity data banks (August 17, 2011) -- Researchers have paired up medicines and maladies with help from a molecular matchmaker. When the scientists applied an "opposites attract" algorithm to publicly available databases, surprising sparks flew: They found potential compatibilities between numerous existing drugs and diseases for which those drugs had never before been thought to be beneficial. ... > full story

Man in the moon looking younger (August 17, 2011) -- Earth's Moon could be younger than previously thought. The prevailing theory of our Moon's origin is that it was created by a giant impact between a large planet-like object and the proto-Earth. The Moon formed from melted material that was ejected into space. Analysis of lunar rock samples thought to have been derived from the original magma has given scientists a new estimate of the Moon's age. ... > full story

Future of inks, paints and coatings takes shape: Researchers determine that particle shape affects the 'coffee ring effect' (August 17, 2011) -- If you've ever spilled a drop of coffee on a surface, you might have noticed the curious way the color concentrates at the edges when the coffee dries. This is known as the "coffee ring effect," and recently, researchers have determined that the shape of the particles in the liquid is an important factor in creating this pattern. ... > full story

Carbon nanotube structures changed by ‘attack’ from within, researchers discover (August 16, 2011) -- A team of researchers has shown for the first time that chemical reactions at the nano-level which change the structure of carbon nanotubes can be sparked by an 'attack' from within. ... > full story

Tiny gold particles boost organic solar cell efficiency: Plasmonic technique helps enhance power conversion by up to 20 percent (August 16, 2011) -- Researchers have demonstrated how they inserted a gold nanoparticle layer between two subcells to combine the tandem cell strategy with the plasmonic effect -- a process that concentrates light via scattering from nanoparticles. As a result, a 20 percent improvement of power conversion efficiency has been attained by the light concentration of gold nanoparticles. ... > full story

Dramatic simplification paves the way for building a quantum computer (August 16, 2011) -- Scientists have demonstrated a new technique that dramatically simplifies quantum circuits, bringing quantum computers closer to reality. ... > full story

Researchers unravel the magic of flocks of starlings (August 16, 2011) -- Do fish swimming in schools or birds flying in flocks have a collective spirit that enables them to move as one? Are they animals with highly developed cognition, a complex instinct or a telepathic gift? A recent study conducted researchers in the Netherlands points in another direction. Mathematical models of self-organization show that complicated collective behavior can be the consequence of a few simple behavioral rules. ... > full story

What caused a giant arrow-shaped cloud on Saturn's moon Titan? (August 16, 2011) -- Why does Titan, Saturn's largest moon, have what looks like an enormous white arrow about the size of Texas on its surface? A research group has answered this question by using a global circulation model of Titan to demonstrate how planetary-scale atmospheric waves affect the moon's weather patterns, leading to a "stenciling" effect that results in sharp and sometimes surprising cloud shapes. ... > full story

Bending light with better precision (August 16, 2011) -- Physicists have demonstrated a new technique to control the speed and direction of light using memory metamaterials whose properties can be repeatedly changed. A metamaterial is a structure engineered from a variety of substances that, when put together, yield optical properties that do not exist in nature. ... > full story

Hint of elusive Higgs boson: An update from the Large Hadron Collider (August 16, 2011) -- The physics world was abuzz with some tantalizing news a couple of weeks ago. At a meeting of the European Physical Society in Grenoble, France, physicists announced that the latest data from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) might hint at the existence of the ever-elusive Higgs boson. ... > full story

Single, key gene discovery could streamline production of biofuels (August 16, 2011) -- Researchers have pinpointed the exact, single gene that controls ethanol production capacity in a microorganism. This discovery could be the missing link in developing biomass crops that produce higher concentrations of ethanol at lower costs. ... > full story

Novel microscopy generates new view of fuel cells (August 16, 2011) -- A novel microscopy method is helping scientists probe the reactions that limit widespread deployment of fuel cell technologies. ... > full story

Strain and spin may enable ultra-low-energy computing (August 16, 2011) -- A new type of integrated circuit may be so energy efficient that it could run simply by harvesting energy from the environment. ... > full story

Measurements reveal extent of leakage from Japan's damaged Fukushima reactor (August 16, 2011) -- From distance of 5,800 miles, researchers calculated how much radiation leaked from damaged fuel at the Fukushima nuclear reactor after an earthquake and tsunami disabled normal cooling systems. Nuclear reactions in the seawater used to douse overheating fuel created a pulse of radioactive sulfur dioxide gas and sulfate particles that revealed the magnitude of the leak. This labeled sulfur will also help researchers to trace sulfur in the atmosphere, an important factor for understanding climate change. ... > full story

New device exposes explosive vapors (August 16, 2011) -- Researchers have designed an ultra-portable device to detect trace amounts of explosives such as TNT. The prototype is sensitive and inexpensive, and may one day be adapted to help clear dangerous landmines. ... > full story

Pathogen research inspires robotics design for medicine and military (August 16, 2011) -- Researchers have made significant findings about the swimming and attachment of the microorganism Giardia. The findings can aid in designs for drug discovery and underwater vehicles. ... > full story

Astronomy: A spectacular spiral in Leo (August 15, 2011) -- A new picture shows NGC 3521, a spiral galaxy located about 35 million light years away in the constellation of Leo (The Lion). Spanning about 50,000 light-years, this spectacular object has a bright and compact nucleus, surrounded by richly detailed spiral structure. ... > full story

Disorder is key to nanotube mystery (August 15, 2011) -- Researchers have observed that water spontaneously flows into extremely small tubes of graphite or graphene, called carbon nanotubes. However, no one has managed to explain why. Now, using a novel method to calculate the dynamics of water molecules, researchers believe they have solved the mystery. It turns out that entropy, a measurement of disorder, has been the missing key. ... > full story

Scientists find easier, cheaper way to make a sought-after chemical modification to pharmaceuticals (August 15, 2011) -- Scientists have devised a much easier technique for performing a chemical modification used widely in the synthesis of drugs and other products. ... > full story

Staying in shape: How the Internet architecture got its hourglass shape and what that means for future Internet architectures (August 15, 2011) -- A new computer model that describes the evolution of the Internet's architecture suggests that a process similar to natural evolution took place to determine which protocols survived and which ones became extinct. Understanding the evolution may help the designers of future Internet architectures. ... > full story

First data from Daya Bay: Closing in on a neutrino mystery (August 15, 2011) -- The international Daya Bay Reactor Neutrino Experiment in southern China has just begun collecting data on the elusive final measurement needed before the masses of the different kinds of neutrinos can be determined. ... > full story

Acoustic cloaking device echoes advances in optical cloaking (August 15, 2011) -- Sound waves that would normally bounce and scatter off objects may be coaxed into slipping past them as if they weren't there, according to a new study that suggests the potential of an acoustical cloaking device. ... > full story

A cosmic inkblot test: Spitzer captures view of Dumbbell Nebula (August 15, 2011) -- If this were an inkblot test, you might see a bow tie or a butterfly depending on your personality. An astronomer would likely see the remains of a dying star scattered about space -- precisely what this is. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope captured this infrared view of what's called a planetary nebula, which is a cloud of material expelled by a burnt out star, called a white dwarf. This object is named the Dumbbell Nebula after its resemblance to the exercise equipment in visible-light views. ... > full story

New nanostructured glass for imaging and recording (August 15, 2011) -- Researchers have developed new nano-structured glass optical elements, which have applications in optical manipulation and will significantly reduce the cost of medical imaging. ... > full story

Forecasting and preventing pipe fractures (August 15, 2011) -- A computer model that tests automobile components for crashworthiness could also be of use to the oil and gas industry, according to researchers, who are now using their simulations of material deformation in car crashes to predict how pipes may fracture in offshore drilling accidents. ... > full story

Effortless sailing with fluid flow cloak (August 15, 2011) -- Engineers have already shown that they can "cloak" light and sound, making objects invisible. Now, they have demonstrated the theoretical ability to significantly increase the efficiency of ships by tricking the surrounding water into staying still. ... > full story

Avatar-based Virtual Co-driver System replaces vehicle owner's manuals (August 15, 2011) -- Flashing signal lamps and unfamiliar control elements tend to worry car drivers. Scientists in Germany in cooperation with engineers at Audi AG have developed an Avatar-based Virtual Co-driver System (AviCoS) to support the driver with explicit information on the vehicle in a natural-language dialog -- supported by images and videos -- making cumbersome paging through owner's manuals a thing of the past. ... > full story

TV time: Why children watch multi-screens (August 15, 2011) -- New research examines the relationship children have with electronic viewing devices and their habits of interacting with more than one at a time. ... > full story

An octave spanning chip-based optical ruler: Scientists develop octave-spanning frequency comb with a microresonator (August 15, 2011) -- Developed moore than a decade ago, the frequency comb technique has stimulated fundamental research as well as laser development and its applications because it gave rise to a major increase in the accuracy of measuring optical frequencies. Already a couple of years ago, a team of scientists succeeded for the first time in generating optical frequency combs using chip-based quartz glass toroids with diameters on the micrometer scale. Now the scientists have made a big step further: their new microresonators produce light over a range of more than an octave and are at the same time precisely tunable ... > full story

New neutrino detection experiment in China up and running (August 15, 2011) -- Deep under a hillside near Hong Kong, a pair of new antineutrino detectors are warming up for some serious physics. ... > full story

Hubble offers dazzling Necklace Nebula (August 14, 2011) -- A giant cosmic necklace glows brightly in this NASA Hubble Space Telescope image. The object, aptly named the Necklace Nebula, is a recently discovered planetary nebula, the glowing remains of an ordinary, Sun-like star. The nebula consists of a bright ring, measuring 12 trillion miles wide, dotted with dense, bright knots of gas that resemble diamonds in a necklace. ... > full story

Catalyst that makes hydrogen gas breaks speed record (August 14, 2011) -- Looking to nature for their muse, researchers have used a common protein to guide the design of a material that can make energy-storing hydrogen gas. The synthetic material works 10 times faster than the original protein found in water-dwelling microbes, the researchers clocking in at 100,000 molecules of hydrogen gas every second. ... > full story