Technologies & Strategies That Enable R&D
The Lead
NASA head views progress on asteroid lasso mission
May 23, 2013 10:59 pm | by Alicia Chang, AP Science Writer | News | Comments
Surrounded by engineers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, NASA chief Charles Bolden on Thursday inspected a prototype spacecraft engine that could power an audacious mission to lasso an asteroid and tow it closer to Earth for astronauts to explore. Once relegated to science fiction, ion propulsion is preferred for deep space cruising because it's more fuel-efficient.
2013 R&D 100 Awards: Deadline Approaches
March 21, 2013 2:00 pm | Articles | Comments
There is still time to prepare your entry in the 51st Annual R&D 100 Awards...
Multitasking plasmonic nanobubbles kill some cells, modify others
December 3, 2012 3:30 pm | by Mike Williams, Rice University | News | Comments
Researchers at Rice University have found a way to kill some diseased cells and treat others in...
Geoscientists cite need for basic research to unleash new energy sources
December 3, 2012 12:26 pm | News | Comments
Geological and environmental challenges facing developers of renewable energy and shale gas...
100K Pathogen Genome Project maps first genomes
May 24, 2013 12:00 pm | News | CommentsStriking a blow at foodborne diseases, the 100K Pathogen Genome Project at the University of California, Davis today announced that it has sequenced the genomes of its first 10 infectious microorganisms, including strains of Salmonella and Listeria.
A quantum simulator for magnetic materials
May 24, 2013 11:37 am | News | CommentsPhysicists understand perfectly well why a fridge magnet sticks to certain metallic surfaces. But there are more exotic forms of magnetism whose properties remain unclear, despite decades of intense research. Now, researchers at ETH Zurich in Switzerland have developed a quantum simulator that can arrange atoms in a way that they mimic the behavior of electrons in magnetic materials.
Earth’s mantle may affect long-term sea-level rise estimates
May 24, 2013 11:27 am | by Rob Enslin, Syracuse University | News | CommentsFrom Virginia to Florida, there is a prehistoric shoreline that, in some parts, rests more than 280 feet above modern sea level. The shoreline was carved by waves more than 3 million years ago—possible evidence of a once higher sea level, triggered by ice-sheet melting. But new findings by a team of researchers reveal that the shoreline has been uplifted by more than 210 feet, meaning less ice melted than expected.
Cinnamon: Could it prevent Alzheimer's?
May 24, 2013 10:42 am | News | CommentsCinnamon: Can the red-brown spice with the unmistakable fragrance and variety of uses offer an important benefit? The common baking spice might hold the key to delaying the onset of—or warding off—the effects of Alzheimer's disease. That is, according to scientists at University of California, Santa Barbara.
Scientists build record-setting metamaterial flat lens
May 24, 2013 10:20 am | News | CommentsFor the first time, scientists working NIST have demonstrated a new type of lens that bends and focuses ultraviolet light in a way that it can create ghostly, 3D images of objects that float in free space. The easy-to-build lens could lead to improved photolithography, nanoscale manipulation and manufacturing, and even high-resolution 3D imaging, as well as a number of as-yet-unimagined applications in a diverse range of fields.
Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry
May 24, 2013 8:32 am | Hiden Analytical Inc. | Product Releases | CommentsSecondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) is a versatile, sensitive technique for surface analysis and surface depth profiling of diverse materials. Hiden Analytical has expanded their primary system options to offer the choice of three initial equipment levels.
Workspace Solutions for Manufacturing Facilities
May 24, 2013 8:29 am | Product Releases | CommentsLista International Corp. offers a variety of storage and workstation solutions to improve efficiency and organization in manufacturing facilities. Lista’s modular workbenches and workstations are suited for use in cellular manufacturing and lean manufacturing initiatives.
Biophysicists measure mechanism that determines fate of living cells
May 24, 2013 8:11 am | News | CommentsCells in the human body do not function in isolation. Living cells rely on communication with their environment—neighboring cells and the surrounding matrix—to activate a wide range of cellular functions. This cellular communication occurs on the molecular level and it is reciprocal. Now, for the first time, researchers have measured the molecular force required to mechanically transmit function-regulating signals within a cell.
Balance is key to making quantum-dot solar cells work
May 24, 2013 7:53 am | by David L. Chandler, MIT News Office | News | CommentsThere has been great interest in using quantum dots to produce low-cost, easily manufactured, stable photovoltaic cells. But, so far, the creation of such cells has been limited by the fact that in practice, quantum dots are not as good at conducting an electric charge as they are in theory. Something in the physical structure of these cells seems to trap their electric-charge carriers. Now researchers may have found the key.
NSF and SRC to fund research to create failure-resistant circuits
May 24, 2013 5:00 am | News | CommentsLeaders of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC), the world's leading university-research consortium for semiconductors and related technologies, this week announced 18 new projects funded through a joint initiative to address research challenges in the design of failure-resistant circuits and systems.
Scientists offer first definitive proof of bacteria-feeding behavior in green algae
May 23, 2013 11:21 pm | News | CommentsA team of researchers has captured images of green alga consuming bacteria, offering a glimpse at how early organisms dating back more than 1 billion years may have acquired free-living photosynthetic cells. This acquisition is thought to have been a critical first step in the evolution of photosynthetic algae and land plants.
Cockroaches quickly lose sweet tooth to survive
May 23, 2013 11:04 pm | by Malcolm Ritter, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsFor decades, people have been getting rid of cockroaches by setting out bait mixed with poison. But in the late 1980s, in an apartment test kitchen in Florida, something went very wrong. A killer product stopped working. Cockroach populations there kept rising. Mystified researchers tested and discarded theory after theory until they finally hit on the explanation.
New filtration material could make petroleum refining cheaper, more efficient
May 23, 2013 10:55 pm | News | CommentsA newly synthesized material might provide a dramatically improved method for separating the highest-octane components of gasoline. These components are expensive to isolate. Created in the laboratory of Jeffrey Long, professor of chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, the material is a metal-organic framework, or MOF, which can be imagined as a sponge with microscopic holes.
Cradle turns smartphone into handheld biosensor
May 23, 2013 10:49 pm | by Liz Ahlberg, University of Illinois | News | CommentsUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign researchers have developed a cradle and app for the iPhone that uses the phone’s built-in camera and processing power as a biosensor to detect toxins, proteins, bacteria, viruses and other molecules. Having such sensitive biosensing capabilities in the field could enable on-the-spot tracking of groundwater contamination, or provide immediate and inexpensive medical diagnostic tests.
FDA approves blood test to diagnose diabetes
May 23, 2013 5:23 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsThe Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it approved a new blood test from Roche to help doctors diagnose diabetes. The Cobas Integra 800 is a blood test that measures a patient's average blood sugar level over the previous three months. In particular, the test measures an oxygen-carrying blood component known as hemoglobin.
