ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Saturday, June 4, 2011

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Saturday, June 4, 2011

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NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity passes small crater and big milestone (June 3, 2011) -- A drive of 482 feet (146.8 meters) on June 1, 2011, took NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity past 30 kilometers (18.64 miles) in total odometry during 88 months of driving on Mars. That's 50 times the distance originally planned for the mission and more than 12 times the distance racehorses will run at the Belmont Stakes. ... > full story

Weight loss success in a 3-D virtual world (June 3, 2011) -- Participants in two weight-loss programs -- one at a health club, the other delivered in a virtual world -- lost similar amounts of weight and body fat, but the online contingent reported significantly greater gains in behaviors that could help them live healthier and leaner lives. ... > full story

New sound synchronization technology holds the key to earlier diagnosis of heart disease (June 3, 2011) -- Innovative technology is contributing to the development of a revolutionary digital stethoscope that could make it easier for doctors to spot the first signs of heart disease. ... > full story

Lasers used to form 3-D crystals made of nanoparticles (June 3, 2011) -- Physicists have used the electric fields generated by intersecting laser beams to trap and manipulate thousands of microscopic plastic spheres, thereby creating 3-D arrays of optically induced crystals. ... > full story

Quantum physics first: Physicists measure without distorting (June 3, 2011) -- Quantum mechanics is famous for saying that a tree falling in a forest when there's no one there doesn't make a sound. Quantum mechanics also says that if anyone is listening, it interferes with and changes the tree. And so the famous paradox: how can we know reality if we cannot measure it without distorting it? An international team of researchers has found a way to do just that by applying a modern measurement technique to the historic two-slit interferometer experiment in which a beam of light shone through two slits results in an interference pattern on a screen behind. ... > full story

Researchers build largest biochemical circuit out of small synthetic DNA molecules (June 3, 2011) -- In many ways, life is like a computer. An organism's genome is the software that tells the cellular and molecular machinery -- the hardware -- what to do. But instead of electronic circuitry, life relies on biochemical circuitry -- complex networks of reactions and pathways that enable organisms to function. Now, researchers have built the most complex biochemical circuit ever created from scratch. ... > full story

Researchers map, measure brain's neural connections (June 3, 2011) -- Computer scientists have created software to examine neural circuitry in the human brain. The 2-D neural maps combine visual clarity with a Web-based digital map interface, and users can view 2-D maps together with 3-D images. The program aims to better understand myelinated axons, which have been linked to pathologies such as autism. ... > full story

Phase change memory-based 'Moneta' system points to the future of computer storage (June 3, 2011) -- Researchers are about to demonstrate a first-of-its kind, phase-change memory solid state storage device provides performance thousands of times faster than a conventional hard drive and up to seven times faster than current state-of-the-art solid-state drives. ... > full story

Mathematical models provide insights into cholera vaccination strategies for Zimbabwe (June 3, 2011) -- Mathematical models analyzing how a cholera outbreak spread in Zimbabwe are providing new insights into the most effective vaccination strategies for preventing future cholera epidemics, according to researchers. ... > full story

Examining the brain as a neural information super-highway (June 3, 2011) -- A new article demonstrates how tools for modeling traffic on the Internet and telephone systems can be used to study information flow in brain networks. ... > full story

Solar inverters: Losses are cut in half (June 3, 2011) -- A switching trick makes it possible to cut the losses of a series-production inverter in half and increase the efficiency from 96 to 98 percent. The new technology makes it possible to achieve a world-record efficiency of more than 99 percent. ... > full story

Single-crystal arrays of graphene: Advance in efforts to develop a replacement for silicon in high-performance electronics (June 2, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a method for creating single-crystal arrays of the material graphene, an advance that opens the possibility of a replacement for silicon in high-performance computers and electronics. Graphene is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon that was first fabricated in 2004. Single-crystal arrays of the material could be used to create a new class of high-speed transistors and integrated circuits that use less energy than silicon electronics because graphene conducts electricity with little resistance or heat generation. ... > full story