Space Season: ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Wednesday, February 9, 2011

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Wednesday, February 9, 2011

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Successful operation of carbon nanotube-based integrated circuits manufactured on plastic substrates (February 9, 2011) -- Scientists have developed a simple and fast process to manufacture high-quality carbon nanotube-based thin film transistors (TFT) on a plastic substrate, enabling them to manufacture the world's first sequential logic circuits using carbon nanotubes. The technology could lead to the development of high-speed, roll-to-roll manufacturing processes to manufacture low-cost flexible devices such as electronic paper in the future. ... > full story

Jatropha: Green biodiesel from African tree (February 9, 2011) -- Jatropha has been championed as a major environmental opportunity for developing countries with a semi-arid climate and marginal soil. Scientists have been investigating whether this small, hardy and relatively pest-free tree lives up to its billing. ... > full story

Generic drug may improve the effectiveness of cancer nanotherapies (February 8, 2011) -- Low doses of losartan, an FDA-approved generic hypertension medication, may improve the results of nanotherapeutic approaches to cancer treatment by modifying the network of abnormal collagen fibers that characterizes most solid tumors. ... > full story

Tool makes search for Martian life easier: Red Planet a good fit for laser-ion funnel mass spectrometry (February 8, 2011) -- Newly developed ion funnel technology could make finding life on Mars's surface easier when coupled with a laser and a mass spectrometer that are placed directly on the robotic arm of a space rover. ... > full story

Fingerprint makes computer chips counterfeit-proof (February 8, 2011) -- Product counterfeiters are increasingly targeting computer chips and electronic components, with attacks on hardware modules becoming commonplace. Tailor-made security technology utilizes a component's individual material properties to generate a digital key. This provides components with an identity -- since their unique structure cannot be copied. ... > full story

Helping drivers cut fuel use (February 8, 2011) -- Ever wonder how much fuel you can save by avoiding stop-and-go traffic, closing your window, not using air conditioning or coasting toward stops? ... > full story

Conceptualizing cancer cells as ancient 'toolkit' (February 8, 2011) -- In a new paper, astrobiology researchers seek to explain why cancer cells deploy so many clever tricks in such a coherent and organized way. ... > full story

Researchers predict future of electronic devices, see top ten list of expected breakthroughs (February 8, 2011) -- In the first published critical review of technical developments related to electronic paper devices (i.e., e-readers like the Amazon Kindle), experts review the next generation of these devices. ... > full story

Bound neutrons pave way to free ones: Scientists extract information about internal structure of free neutrons (February 8, 2011) -- A study of bound protons and neutrons has allowed scientists, for the first time, to extract information through experimentation about the internal structure of free neutrons, without the assistance of a theoretical model. ... > full story

New technique controls sizes of nanoparticle clusters for environmental, health and safety studies (February 8, 2011) -- Researchers have demonstrated for the first time a method for producing nanoparticle clusters in a variety of controlled sizes that are stable over time. The technique can be used in studies on the environmental, health and safety impacts of nanoparticle clusters. ... > full story

Atom-thick sheets unlock future technologies (February 8, 2011) -- A new way of splitting layered materials, similar to graphite, into sheets of material just one atom thick could lead to revolutionary new electronic and energy storage technologies. ... > full story

Digital signal processing helps researchers get a grip on nervous system's receptors (February 8, 2011) -- A digital signal processing technique long used by statisticians to analyze data is helping scientists understand the roots of memory and learning, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases and stroke. ... > full story

Math may help calculate way to find new drugs for HIV and other diseases (February 8, 2011) -- Using mathematical concepts, researchers have developed a method of discovering new drugs for a range of diseases by calculating which physical properties of biological molecules may predict their effectiveness as medicines. ... > full story

Laser welding in the right light (February 8, 2011) -- Laser welding is on the advance, but it also has its limits: it has been impossible to fuse two transparent plastic components together -- up until now. Researchers have now succeeded in circumventing this hurdle -- by choosing the right wavelength. The new welding process is revolutionizing bioanalytics. ... > full story

Aluminum to replace copper as a conductor in on-board power systems (February 7, 2011) -- Currently copper is the conductor of choice for electric power and electronics in all kinds of vehicles. But in comparison to aluminum, copper is heavy and expensive. A switch to cheaper and lighter aluminum would be an interesting option, particularly for fully electric vehicles. Scientists have now found out what tricks can make it possible to replace copper with aluminum. ... > full story

Language may play important role in learning the meanings of numbers (February 7, 2011) -- New research conducted with deaf people in Nicaragua shows that language may play an important role in learning the meanings of numbers. ... > full story

Engineers grow nanolasers on silicon, pave way for on-chip photonics (February 7, 2011) -- Engineers have found a way to grow nanolasers directly onto a silicon surface, an achievement that could lead to a new class of faster, more efficient microprocessors, as well as to powerful biochemical sensors that use optoelectronic chips. ... > full story

Low-cost, nanometer-sized drug holds promise for treatment of chronic diabetes and burn wounds (February 7, 2011) -- A low cost, nanometer-sized drug to treat chronic wounds, such as diabetic foot ulcers or burns, has been developed by a group of scientists from Israel, the U.S. and Japan. ... > full story

DNA engine observed in real-time traveling along base pair track (February 7, 2011) -- In a complex feat of nanoengineering, a team of scientists has succeeded in creating a programmable molecular transport system, the workings of which can be observed in real time. The results open the door to the development of advanced drug delivery methods and molecular manufacturing systems. ... > full story

Clay-armored bubbles may have formed first protocells: Minerals could have played a key role in the origins of life (February 7, 2011) -- A team of applied physicists has demonstrated the formation of semipermeable vesicles from inorganic clay. The research shows that clay vesicles provide an ideal container for the compartmentalization of complex organic molecules. ... > full story

Roaches inspire robotics: Researchers use common cockroach to fine-tune robots of the future (February 7, 2011) -- The study of cockroaches, locusts, and caterpillars is inspiring new frontiers in advanced robotics. New research delves deep into the neurological functioning of the cockroach, giving engineers the information they need to design more compact, versatile and efficient robots -- for both earthbound missions and those in outer space. ... > full story

Normal air could halve fuel consumption (February 7, 2011) -- Every time a car brakes, energy is generated. At present this energy is not used, but new research shows that it is perfectly possible to save it for later use in the form of compressed air. It can then provide extra power to the engine when the car is started and save fuel by avoiding idle operation when the car is at a standstill. ... > full story

First ever STEREO images of the entire sun (February 7, 2011) -- NASA has released the first complete view of the sun's entire surface and atmosphere. Seeing the whole sun front and back simultaneously will enable significant advances in space weather forecasting for Earth, and improve planning for future robotic or crewed spacecraft missions throughout the solar system. ... > full story

Better turbine spacing for large wind farms (February 7, 2011) -- Large wind farms are being built around the world as a cleaner way to generate electricity, but operators are still searching for the most efficient way to arrange the massive turbines that turn moving air into power. For maximum efficiency in power generation, operators of large wind farms should space their turbines farther apart, researchers say. ... > full story

Seeing the light: Scientists bring plasmonic nanofields into focus (February 7, 2011) -- Scientists have engineered an innovative imaging technique to visualize plasmonic fields with nanoscale resolution. This technique, which harnesses light within a bowtie-shaped structure, could be used to measure the performance of plasmonic devices. ... > full story

‘Cornell dots’ that light up cancer cells go into clinical trials (February 7, 2011) -- "Cornell Dots" -- brightly glowing nanoparticles -- may soon be used to light up cancer cells to aid in diagnosing and treating cancer. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first clinical trial in humans of the new technology. It is the first time the FDA has approved using an inorganic material in the same fashion as a drug in humans. ... > full story

Engineers predict how fire spreads in warehouses (February 7, 2011) -- Engineers have made a breakthrough discovery that could help ease these situations by predicting where and how quickly initial fires spread in warehouses. ... > full story

NASA spacecraft prepares for Valentine's Day comet rendezvous (February 7, 2011) -- NASA's Stardust-NExT spacecraft is nearing a celestial date with comet Tempel 1 at approximately 8:37 p.m. PST (11:37 p.m. EST), on Feb. 14. The mission will allow scientists for the first time to look for changes on a comet's surface that occurred following an orbit around the sun. The Stardust-NExT, or New Exploration of Tempel, spacecraft will take high-resolution images during the encounter, and attempt to measure the composition, distribution, and flux of dust emitted into the coma, or material surrounding the comet's nucleus. Data from the mission will provide important new information on how Jupiter-family comets evolved and formed. ... > full story

First stars in universe were not alone (February 6, 2011) -- The first stars in the universe were not as solitary as previously thought. In fact, they could have formed alongside numerous companions when the gas disks that surrounded them broke up during formation, giving birth to sibling stars in the fragments. ... > full story

Rare meteorites reveal Mars collision caused water flow (February 6, 2011) -- Exactly a century after the first discovery of a rare meteorite sample, a research team has used it to reveal new insights into water on the red planet. Rare fragments of Martian meteorites have been investigated, revealing one of the ways water flowed near the surface of Mars. ... > full story

A loose grip provides better chemotherapy (February 5, 2011) -- Researchers have found that cancer patients may get a bigger bang and fewer side effects with a new take on a drug delivery system. By using noncovalent bonds to link light-activated anti-cancer drugs to coated gold nanoparticles, they were able to activate treatment in two hours instead of two days. The scientists expect the targeted delivery system will cut dosage by a factor of 10 or more. ... > full story

Nanoscale micorscopy and AFM positioning: Shining light on a needle in a haystack (February 5, 2011) -- Researchers report a neat solution to the "needle in a haystack" problem of nanoscale microscopy, but it's more like the difference between finding the coffee table in a darkened room either by walking around until you fall over it, or using a flashlight. Researchers found tiny assemblies of biomolecules for subsequent detailed imaging by combining precision laser optics with atomic force microscopy. ... > full story

New twist on the electron beam (February 5, 2011) -- Researchers have found a novel, and potentially widely applicable, method to expand the capabilities of conventional transmission electron microscopes by adding a new twist to their electron beams. ... > full story

Gas stations pollute their immediate surroundings, Spanish study finds (February 5, 2011) -- In Spain, it is relatively common to come across gas stations surrounded by houses, particularly in urban areas. Researchers have studied the effects of contamination at gas stations that is potentially harmful to health, which can be noted in buildings less than 100 meters from the service stations. ... > full story

New images show cloud exploding from Sun ripples like clouds on Earth (February 4, 2011) -- Physicists studying new images of clouds of material exploding from the Sun have spotted instabilities forming in that exploding cloud that are similar to those seen in clouds in Earth's atmosphere. ... > full story

New wave: Efficient source of terahertz radiation developed (February 4, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a laser-based source of terahertz radiation that is unusually efficient and less prone to damage than similar systems. The technology might be useful in applications such as detecting trace gases or imaging weapons in security screening. ... > full story

Quantum quirk: Scientists pack atoms together to prevent collisions in atomic clock (February 4, 2011) -- In a paradox typical of the quantum world, scientists have eliminated collisions between atoms in an atomic clock by packing the atoms closer together. The surprising discovery can boost the performance of experimental atomic clocks made of thousands or tens of thousands of neutral atoms trapped by intersecting laser beams. ... > full story

Scientists use quantum mechanics to show that glass will melt near absolute zero (February 4, 2011) -- By cooling glass to a temperature near absolute zero (-459.67 degrees Fahrenheit), a professor is demonstrating that, at the quantum level, glass exhibits a very different behavior than might be expected from traditional physics -- in fact, it melts. ... > full story

New model for how Nevada gold deposits formed may help in gold exploration (February 4, 2011) -- Researchers have devised a new model for how Nevada's gold deposits formed, which may help in exploration efforts for new gold deposits. ... > full story

Northern Mars landscape actively changing (February 4, 2011) -- Sand dunes in a vast area of northern Mars long thought to be frozen in time are changing with both sudden and gradual motions, as revealed by images from a high-resolution camera aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or MRO. The new findings help scientists to better understand what features and landscapes on Mars can be explained by current processes and which require environmental conditions no longer present on the planet. ... > full story

Microbiologists aim to optimize bio-ethanol production (February 4, 2011) -- Researchers are working to resolve an emerging "food versus fuel" rivalry: they are investigating how to most effectively utilize residual field crop material for industrial production of bio-ethanol. Getting a handle on the full "toolbox" that soil bacteria use to transform cellulose into sugar could help to optimize combinations of enzymes for industrial use, potentially leading to development of a specialized degradation tool for every kind of plant waste containing cellulose. ... > full story

Same rules apply to some experimental systems regardless of scale (February 4, 2011) -- New experiments show that common scientific rules can apply to significantly different phenomena operating on vastly different scales. The results raise the possibility of making discoveries pertaining to phenomena that would be too large or impractical to recreate in the laboratory. ... > full story

Ionization by strong laser fields: Understanding the 'Ionization Surprise' (February 4, 2011) -- In 2009 researchers found an "ionization surprise" that defied explanation. Until that time, it had been commonly thought that the ionization of atoms by strong laser fields was well-understood, but novel experiments where rare gas atoms were ionized using relatively long (few-micrometers) wavelength laser light suddenly revealed an unexpected and universal low-energy feature that defied explanation. Now, scientists have provided an explanation. ... > full story

Effective search terms yield the right information (February 4, 2011) -- It does not matter how good a search engine is if the person doing a search does not ask for the desired information in the right way. So far, a great deal of the research on information retrieval has aimed to develop search algorithms and powerful search engines. Yet, a new doctoral thesis on natural language processing shows that it is also important to look at the terms people type into the search box. ... > full story

Proposed mission to Jupiter system achieves milestone (February 4, 2011) -- With input from scientists around the world, American and European scientists working on the potential next new mission to the Jupiter system have articulated their joint vision for the Europa Jupiter System Mission. The mission is a proposed partnership between NASA and the European Space Agency. The scientists on the joint NASA-ESA definition team agreed that the overarching science theme for the Europa Jupiter System Mission will be "the emergence of habitable worlds around gas giants." ... > full story

Missing link between young, old galaxies? Gas jet galaxy could explain how starforming galaxies become red and dead (February 3, 2011) -- Astronomers may have found the missing link between young, gas-filled, star-forming galaxies and older, gas-depleted galaxies typically characterized as "red and dead." New research finds that a long-known "early-type" galaxy, NGC 1266, is expelling molecular gas, mostly hydrogen, from its core. The unusual galaxy may help explain how gas-filled galaxies rid themselves of their molecular gas. ... > full story

Communication pathways within proteins may yield new drug targets to stop superbugs (February 3, 2011) -- A biophysicist has developed a new method to identify communication pathways connecting distant regions within proteins. With this tool, the researcher has identified a mechanism for cooperative behavior within an entire molecule, a finding that suggests that in the future it may be possible to design drugs that target anywhere along the length of a molecule's communication pathway rather than only in a single location as they do today. ... > full story

Energy-efficient intelligent house can monitor health, prototype shows (February 3, 2011) -- A prototype of an energy-efficient house which can send alerts if its residents are ill has been developed. ... > full story