News
Physicists discover a new kind of friction in the nano-world
May 15, 2013 1:00 pm | by Technische Universitaet Muenchen | CommentsWhether in vehicle transmissions, hip replacements, or tiny sensors for triggering airbags: The respective components must slide against each other with minimum friction to prevent loss of energy and material wear. Investigating the friction behavior of nanosystems, scientists have discovered a previously unknown type of friction...
Cells as living calculators
May 15, 2013 1:00 pm | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsMIT engineers have transformed bacterial cells into living calculators that can compute logarithms, divide, and take square roots, using three or fewer genetic parts.Inspired by how analog electronic circuits function, the researchers created synthetic computation circuits by combining existing genetic “parts,” or engineered genes, in novel ways.The circuits perform those calculations in an analog fashion by exploiting nat...
Making frequency-hopping radios practical
May 15, 2013 12:33 pm | by MIT | CommentsResearchers at MIT’s Microsystems Technology Laboratory have developed a new method for manufacturing such filters that could improve their performance while enabling 14 times as many of them to be crammed on a single chip. The new method uses techniques already common in the production of signal-processing chips ...
Japan watchdog to halt test reactor over safety
May 15, 2013 12:11 pm | by MARI YAMAGUCHI, Associated Press | CommentsJapan's nuclear watchdog announced Wednesday that the nation's trouble-plagued next-generation test reactor will not be allowed to restart due to safety violations, dealing a setback to the country's pro-nuclear government. The Nuclear Regulation Authority's decision is the latest blow to the Monju fast-breeder reactor and Japan's nuclear fuel cycle program.
EU: China may be dumping mobile network equipment
May 15, 2013 11:57 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsA senior EU official says China may be illegally dumping and subsidizing the import into Europe of mobile telephone networks and their essential elements. But Competition Commissioner Karel De Gucht says an official investigation, while approved by the European Commission, won't be launched now as officials seek an amicable resolution.
Google poised to show off latest devices, services
May 15, 2013 1:22 am | by MICHAEL LIEDTKE - AP Technology Writer - Associated Press | CommentsGoogle is expected to use its annual software developers' conference to showcase the latest mobile devices running on its Android software, while also unveiling other features in its evolving product line-up. The gathering, scheduled to begin Wednesday morning in San Francisco, provides Google...
Secret of efficient photosynthesis is decoded
May 14, 2013 5:42 pm | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsPurple bacteria are among Earth’s oldest organisms, and among its most efficient in turning sunlight into usable chemical energy. Now, a key to their light-harvesting prowess has been explained through a detailed structural analysis by scientists at MIT.A ring-shaped molecule with an unusual ninefold symmetry is critical, the researchers found. The circular symmetry accounts for its efficiency in converting sunlight, and for its mecha...
Three X-class flares in 24 hours
May 14, 2013 12:29 pm | by NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center | CommentsThe sun emitted a third significant solar flare in under 24 hours, peaking at 9:11 p.m. EDT on May 13, 2013. This flare is classified as an X3.2 flare. This is the strongest X-class flare of 2013 so far, surpassing in strength the two X-class flares that occurred earlier in the 24-hour period.
Solar panels as inexpensive as paint? It’s possible
May 14, 2013 12:10 pm | by University at Buffalo | CommentsResearchers are helping develop a new generation of photovoltaic cells that produce more power and cost less to manufacture than what’s available today. One of the more promising efforts involves the use of plasmonic-enhanced organic photovoltaic materials.
Yale psychiatrist: Get the most out of life — get out of your own way
May 14, 2013 12:00 pm | by Yale UniversityYale University | CommentsThose moments in life when you are most fully engaged have a common element — you let go of all concerns, resentments, and thoughts of yourself, says Yale psychiatrist Dr. Judson Brewer, who asserts that people can improve their performance and even quit smoking through a technique called neurofeedback....
Microsoft Windows 8 update will be free
May 14, 2013 11:31 am | by The Associated Press | CommentsMicrosoft says a planned update to its Windows 8 operating system will be made available for free later this year. The update is meant to address complaints and confusion that have been blamed for deepening a slump in personal computer sales. Microsoft isn't saying what kind of changes will be...
IT industry ignores silver surfers at its peril
May 14, 2013 11:02 am | by EurekAlert! | CommentsHardware and software vendors are foolish to ignore the needs of the growing population of older computer and information technology users, the so-called "silver surfers." US researchers offer convincing evidence in a monograph that from the business perspective, seniors represent a rapidly growing sector of the market...
New software spots, isolates cyber-attacks to protect networked control systems
May 14, 2013 10:51 am | by North Carolina State University | CommentsResearchers from North Carolina State University have developed a software algorithm that detects and isolates cyber-attacks on networked control systems – which are used to coordinate transportation, power and other infrastructure across the United States.
Gov't obtains wide AP phone records in probe
May 14, 2013 10:48 am | by MARK SHERMAN, Associated Press | CommentsThe Justice Department secretly obtained two months of telephone records of reporters and editors for The Associated Press in what the news cooperative's top executive called a "massive and unprecedented intrusion" into how news organizations gather the news.
Kids coding in the cloud
May 14, 2013 10:32 am | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsOne of the most popular online destinations on the MIT network is not a website for scientists, engineers or college students, but an online community where kids learn to code.Every day, thousands of young people, ages 8 and up, gather on MIT’s Scratch website, where they program their own interactive stories, games, animations and simulations — and share their creati...
