ScienceDaily Technology Headlines -- for Wednesday, March 28, 2012

ScienceDaily Technology Headlines

for Wednesday, March 28, 2012

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Astronomers detect vast amounts of gas and dust around black hole in early universe (March 27, 2012) -- Astronomers have discovered a large reservoir of gas and dust in a galaxy that surrounds the most distant supermassive black hole known. Light from the galaxy, called J1120+0641, has taken so long to reach us that the galaxy is seen as it was only 740 million years after the Big Bang, when the universe was only 1/18th of its current age. ... > full story

Bacteria use chat to play the 'prisoner's dilemma' game in deciding their fate (March 27, 2012) -- When faced with life-or-death situations, bacteria -- and maybe even human cells -- use an extremely sophisticated version of "game theory" to consider their options and decide upon the best course of action. Scientists said microbes "play" a version of the classic "Prisoner's Dilemma" game. ... > full story

New evidence that comets deposited building blocks of life on primordial Earth (March 27, 2012) -- New research provides further support for the idea that comets bombarding Earth billions of years ago carried and deposited the key ingredients for life to spring up on the planet. ... > full story

Capsule for removing radioactive contamination from milk, fruit juices, other beverages (March 27, 2012) -- Amid concerns about possible terrorist attacks with nuclear materials, and fresh memories of environmental contamination from the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster in Japan, scientists have developed a capsule that can be dropped into water, milk, fruit juices and other foods to remove more than a dozen radioactive substances. ... > full story

Transparent, flexible '3-D' memory chips may be the next big thing in small memory devices (March 27, 2012) -- New memory chips that are transparent, flexible enough to be folded like a sheet of paper, shrug off 1,000-degree Fahrenheit temperatures -- twice as hot as the max in a kitchen oven -- and survive other hostile conditions could usher in the development of next-generation flash-competitive memory for tomorrow's keychain drives, cell phones and computers, scientists say. ... > full story

Nanostarfruits are pure gold for research (March 27, 2012) -- Starfruit-shaped gold nanorods could nourish applications that rely on surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, such as medical imaging and chemical sensing. ... > full story

New process converts polyethylene into carbon fiber (March 27, 2012) -- Common material such as polyethylene used in plastic bags could be turned into something far more valuable through a new process. ... > full story

Nanoparticles and magnetic current used to damage cancerous cells in mice (March 27, 2012) -- Using nanoparticles and alternating magnetic fields, scientists have found that head and neck cancerous tumor cells in mice can be killed in half an hour without harming healthy cells. The findings mark the first time to the researchers' knowledge this cancer type has been treated using magnetic iron oxide nanoparticle-induced hyperthermia, or above-normal body temperatures, in laboratory mice. ... > full story

Some flame retardants make fires more deadly (March 27, 2012) -- Some of the flame retardants added to carpets, furniture upholstery, plastics, crib mattresses, car and airline seats and other products to suppress the visible flames in fires are actually increasing the danger of invisible toxic gases that are the No. 1 cause of death in fires. ... > full story

Researchers discover a new path for light through metal (March 27, 2012) -- Researchers have coaxed a thin film of titanium nitride into transporting plasmons, tiny electron excitations coupled to light that can direct and manipulate optical signals on the nanoscale. Titanium nitride's addition to the short list of surface-plasmon-supporting materials, formerly comprised only of metals, could point the way to a new class of optoelectronic devices with unprecedented speed and efficiency. ... > full story

Microfluidic chip developed to stem flu outbreaks (March 27, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a rapid, low-cost, accurate, point-of-care device that matches the accuracy of expensive and time-consuming lab-based tests to diagnose influenza. ... > full story

Living human gut-on-a-chip: Tiny device simulates structure, microenvironment, and mechanical behavior of human intestine (March 27, 2012) -- Researchers have created a gut-on-a-chip microdevice lined by living human cells that mimics the structure, physiology, and mechanics of the human intestine -- even supporting the growth of living microbes within its luminal space. As a more accurate alternative to conventional cell culture and animal models, the microdevice could help researchers gain new insights into intestinal disorders and evaluate the safety and efficacy of potential treatments. ... > full story

Ion Beam Laboratory looks at advanced materials for reactors (March 27, 2012) -- Scientists are studying how to rapidly evaluate the tougher advanced materials needed to build the next generation of nuclear reactors and extend the lives of current reactors. ... > full story

New catalyst promises cheaper, greener drugs (March 27, 2012) -- A chemistry team has discovered environmentally-friendly iron-based nanoparticle catalysts that work as well as the expensive, toxic, metal-based catalysts that are currently in wide use by the drug, fragrance and food industry. ... > full story

Engineers set their sights on asteroid deflection (March 27, 2012) -- Engineers are developing an innovative technique based on lasers that could radically change asteroid deflection technology. ... > full story

A planetary system from the early Universe (March 27, 2012) -- Astronomers have discovered an ancient planetary system that is likely to be a survivor from one of the earliest cosmic eras, 13 billion years ago. The system consists of the star HIP 11952 and two planets, which have orbital periods of 290 and 7 days, respectively. Whereas planets usually form within clouds that include heavier chemical elements, the star HIP 11952 contains very little other than hydrogen and helium. The system promises to shed light on planet formation in the early universe – under conditions quite different from those of later planetary systems, such as our own. ... > full story

New dimension for solar energy: Innovative 3-D designs more than double the solar power generated per area (March 27, 2012) -- Intensive research around the world has focused on improving the performance of solar photovoltaic cells and bringing down their cost. But very little attention has been paid to the best ways of arranging those cells, which are typically placed flat on a rooftop or other surface, or sometimes attached to motorized structures that keep the cells pointed toward the sun as it crosses the sky. Now, a team of researchers has come up with a very different approach: building cubes or towers that extend the solar cells upward in three-dimensional configurations. ... > full story

Cassini makes simultaneous measurements of Saturn's nightside aurora and associated electric current system (March 27, 2012) -- Since the NASA / ESA Cassini-Huygens spacecraft arrived at Saturn in 2004, astronomers and space scientists have been able to study the ringed planet and its moons in great detail. Now, for the first time, a team of planetary scientists have made simultaneous measurements of Saturn’s nightside aurora, magnetic field, and associated charged particles. ... > full story

Watching space weather through the MAGIC of CubeSat CINEMA (March 27, 2012) -- A trio of CubeSats that will study the effects of space weather on the Earth’s radiation belts and magnetic field are being prepared for launch. ... > full story

'Ordinary' black hole discovered 12 million light years away (March 27, 2012) -- Scientists have discovered an ‘ordinary’ black hole in the 12 million light year-distant galaxy Centaurus A. This is the first time that a normal-size black hole has been detected away from the immediate vicinity of our own Galaxy. ... > full story

Deepest ever high-resolution radio survey of Hubble Deep Field begun (March 27, 2012) -- Astronomers have begun the deepest ever high-resolution radio imaging of the region around the Hubble Deep Field (HDF), the images originally captured by the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) in the mid 1990s. The HDF led to the discovery of numerous galaxies billions of light years distant and provided direct visual evidence of the evolution of the Universe. First results from the new imaging show galaxies some 7 billion light years away in unprecedented detail. ... > full story

New SCUBA-2 camera reveals wild youth of the universe (March 27, 2012) -- Astronomers have commenced a revolutionary new study of cosmic star-formation history, looking back in time to when the universe was still in its lively and somewhat unruly youth. The consortium is using a brand new camera called SCUBA-2, the most powerful camera ever developed for observing light at "sub-mm" wavelengths (light that has a wavelength 1000 times longer than we can see with our eyes). ... > full story

Jupiter helps Halley’s Comet give us more spectacular meteor displays (March 27, 2012) -- The dramatic appearance of Halley's comet in the night sky has been observed and recorded by astronomers since 240 BC. Now a study shows that the orbital influences of Jupiter on the comet and the debris it leaves in its wake are responsible for periodic outbursts of activity in the Orionid meteor showers. ... > full story

Evidence stacks up that monolith at Gardom's Edge is astronomically aligned (March 27, 2012) -- Researchers have gathered new evidence that a 4000-year-old monolith was aligned to be an astronomical marker.  The 2.2 meter high monument, located in the Peak District National Park, has a striking, right-angled triangular shape that slants up towards geographic south. The orientation and inclination of the slope is aligned to the altitude of the Sun at mid-summer. The researchers believe that the monolith was set in place to give symbolic meaning to the location through the changing seasonal illuminations. ... > full story

New plastics 'bleed' when cut or scratched -- and then heal like human skin (March 27, 2012) -- A new genre of plastics that mimic the human skin’s ability to heal scratches and cuts offers the promise of endowing cell phones, laptops, cars and other products with self-repairing surfaces, scientists have reported. The plastics change color to warn of wounds and heal themselves when exposed to light. ... > full story

New twist on 1930s technology may become a 21st century weapon against global warming (March 27, 2012) -- Far from being a pipe dream years away from reality, practical technology for capturing carbon dioxide — the main greenhouse gas — from smokestacks is aiming for deployment at coal-fired electric power generating stations and other sources, scientists now say. Scientists have a potential advance toward dealing with the 30 billion tons of carbon dioxide released into the air each year through human activity. ... > full story

More economical way to produce cleaner, hotter natural gas (March 27, 2012) -- New technology is offering the prospect of more economical production of a concentrated form of natural gas with many of the advantages — in terms of reduced shipping and storage costs — of the familiar frozen fruit juice concentrates, liquid laundry detergents and other household products that have been drained of their water, scientists report. ... > full story

New endoscope technology paves the way for 'molecular-guided surgery' for cancer (March 27, 2012) -- With about 15 million endoscopies done on patients each year in the U.S., scientists have reported that a new version of these flexible instruments for diagnosing and treating disease shows promise for helping surgeons more completely remove cancerous tumors. The new technology combines endoscopy with the phenomenon responsible for the blue glow in the water of nuclear reactors. ... > full story

New 'electronic skin' patches monitor health wirelessly (March 27, 2012) -- Like the colorful temporary tattoos that children stick to their arms for fun, people may one day put thin “electronic skin” patches onto their arms to wirelessly diagnose health problems or deliver treatments. The patches could eliminate the need for patients to stay tethered to large machines for hours of treatment or monitoring. ... > full story

New field of chemistry has potential for making drugs inside patients -- and more (March 27, 2012) -- The traditional way of making medicines in a factory may be joined by a new approach in which doctors administer the ingredients for a medicine separately, and those ingredients combine inside patients’ bodies. That’s one promise from an emerging field of chemistry, according to its founder. ... > full story

Popcorn-shaped gold particles gang up on salmonella (March 27, 2012) -- How about a test that identifies Salmonella, the food poisoning bacteria that sickens millions of people each year, in five minutes, so that shipments of lettuce can be confiscated before they reach the table? Scientists have just developed and successfully tested just such a test. ... > full story

A 24-karat gold key to unlock the immune system (March 26, 2012) -- Using nanoparticles made of pure gold, researchers have developed a new method of introducing chemical residues into the immune system, triggering immune cells to help the body fight infection. The breakthrough could lead to an increased understanding of viruses and bacteria, better drug delivery systems, and more effective medications and vaccinations. ... > full story

Research: 'Buckliball' opens new avenue in design of foldable engineering structures (March 26, 2012) -- Inspired by a toy, the 'buckliball' -- a collapsible structure fabricated from a single piece of material -- represents a new class of 3-D, origami-like structures. ... > full story

Butterfly wings' 'art of blackness' could boost production of green fuels (March 26, 2012) -- Butterfly wings may rank among the most delicate structures in nature, but they have given researchers powerful inspiration for new technology that doubles production of hydrogen gas — a green fuel of the future — from water and sunlight. ... > full story

Tiny reader makes fast, cheap DNA sequencing feasible (March 26, 2012) -- Researchers have devised a nanoscale sensor to electronically read the sequence of a single DNA molecule, a technique that is fast and inexpensive and could make DNA sequencing widely available. ... > full story

Cassini to make closest pass yet over Enceladus south pole (March 26, 2012) -- NASA's Cassini spacecraft is preparing to make its lowest pass yet over the south polar region of Saturn's moon Enceladus, where icy particles and water vapor spray out in glittering jets. The closest approach, at an altitude of about 46 miles (74 kilometers), will occur around 11:30 a.m. PDT (2:30 p.m. EDT) on March 27. ... > full story

Slime mold mimics Canadian highway network (March 26, 2012) -- A researcher placed rolled oats on a map of Canada, covering the major urban areas. One urban area held the slime mold. The slime mold reached out for the food, creating thin tubes that eventually formed a network mirroring the Canadian highway system. ... > full story

Computer system identifies liars (March 26, 2012) -- Computer scientists are exploring whether machines can read the visual cues that give away deceit. Results so far are promising: In a study of 40 videotaped conversations, an automated system that analyzed eye movements correctly identified whether interview subjects were lying or telling the truth 82.5 percent of the time. ... > full story

New synthetic biology technique boosts microbial production of diesel fuel (March 26, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a "dynamic sensor-regulator system" that can detect metabolic changes in microbes during the production of fatty acid-based fuels or chemicals and control the expression of genes affecting that production. The result in one demonstration was a threefold increase in the microbial production of biodiesel from glucose. ... > full story

New 'thermal' approach to invisibility cloaking hides heat to enhance technology (March 26, 2012) -- In a new approach to invisibility cloaking, a team of French researchers has proposed isolating or cloaking objects from sources of heat -- essentially "thermal cloaking." This method taps into some of the same principles as optical cloaking and may lead to novel ways to control heat in electronics and, on an even larger scale, might someday prove useful for spacecraft and solar technologies. ... > full story

Using Twitter to predict financial markets (March 26, 2012) -- Researchers have developed a model that uses data from Twitter to help predict the traded volume and value of a stock the following day. ... > full story

New nano-measurements add spark to centuries-old theory of friction (March 26, 2012) -- The phenomenon of friction, when studied on a nanoscale, is more complex than previously thought. When friction occurs, an object does not simply slide its surface over that of another, it also makes a slight up-and-down movement. This finding completes a centuries-old theory of friction dating to 1699 and uncovers a gap in contemporary thinking on friction. The phenomenon has been termed lift-up hysteresis. ... > full story

When ions get closer: New physical attraction discovered (March 26, 2012) -- Physicists have discovered a new physical attraction that accelerates the process of developing even smaller and more powerful computer chips. They have found a previously unknown phenomenon in quantum plasmas. A negatively charged potential makes it possible to combine positively charged particles (ions) in atom-like structures within the plasma. In this way, current can be conducted much more quickly and efficiently than before, opening new perspectives for nanotechnology. ... > full story

E. coli bacteria becomes factory for sugar-modified proteins to make cheaper, faster pharmaceuticals (March 26, 2012) -- Escherichia coli – a bacteria considered the food safety bane of restaurateurs, grocers and consumers – is a friend. Biomolecular engineers have learned to use E. coli to produce sugar-modified proteins for making pharmaceuticals cheaper and faster. ... > full story

Nuclear power plants can produce hydrogen to fuel the 'hydrogen economy' (March 26, 2012) -- The long-sought technology for enabling the fabled “hydrogen economy” — an era based on hydrogen fuel that replaces gasoline, diesel and other fossil fuels, easing concerns about foreign oil and air pollution — has been available for decades and could begin commercial production of hydrogen in this decade, a scientist has reported. ... > full story

'Noodle gels' or 'spaghetti highways' could become tools of regenerative medicine (March 26, 2012) -- Medicine’s recipe for keeping older people active and functioning in their homes and workplaces — and healing younger people injured in catastrophic accidents — may include “noodle gels” and other lab-made invisible filaments that resemble uncooked spaghetti with nanoscale dimensions, a scientist has said. ... > full story

NASA flight tests new ADS-B device on Ikhana UAS (March 26, 2012) -- NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center flew its Ikhana MQ-9 unmanned aircraft with an Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast, or ADS-B, device, for the first time on March 15. It was the first time an unmanned aircraft as large as Ikhana -- with a 66-foot wingspan, a takeoff weight of more than 10,000 pounds, and a cruising altitude of 40,000 feet -- has flown while equipped with ADS-B. ADS-B is an aircraft tracking technology that all planes operating in certain U.S. airspace must adopt by January 2020 to comply with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations. ... > full story

James Cameron makes first ever successful solo dive to Mariana Trench -- ocean's deepest point (March 26, 2012) -- Filmmaker James Cameron descended 35,756 feet (6.77 miles/10.89 km) to reach the "Challenger Deep," the ocean's deepest point located in the Mariana Trench, in his specially designed submersible DEEPSEA CHALLENGER. The attempt was part of DEEPSEA CHALLENGE, a joint scientific expedition by Cameron, National Geographic and Rolex to conduct deep-ocean research and exploration. Cameron is the only individual ever to complete the dive in a solo vehicle and the first person since 1960 to reach the very bottom of the world in a manned submersible. ... > full story