R & D Daily
Scientists moving 15-ton magnet from N.Y. to Chicago
June 17, 2013 6:20 pm | by Frank Eltman, Associated Press | News | Comments
Scientists on Long Island are preparing to move a 50-foot-wide electromagnet 3,200 miles over land and sea to its new home at the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Illinois. The trip, starting at Brookhaven National Laboratory, is expected to take more than a month.
Airborne laser reveals hidden city in Cambodia
June 19, 2013 1:08 am | by Kristen Gelineau, Associated Press | News | Comments
Laser technology has uncovered a network of roadways and canals, illustrating a...
Solar plane to help ground energy use
June 19, 2013 1:01 am | by Seth Borenstein, AP Science Writer | News | Comments
When it's in flight, there's no roar of engines. It's strangely quiet. And as it...
Scientists discuss new photo-taking satellite
June 19, 2013 12:52 am | by Dirk Lammers, Associated Press | News | Comments
Nearly 120 scientists and engineers from around the world are meeting in South Dakota...
Less is more: Novel cellulose structure requires fewer enzymes to process biomass to fuel
June 19, 2013 4:49 pm | News | CommentsImproved methods for breaking down cellulose nanofibers are central to cost-effective biofuel production and the subject of new research from Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center. Scientists are investigating the unique properties of crystalline cellulose nanofibers to develop novel chemical pretreatments and designer enzymes for biofuel production from cellulosic—or non-food—plant derived biomass.
Expressly unfit for the laboratory
June 19, 2013 4:39 pm | News | CommentsA new Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study challenges the orthodoxy of microbiology, which holds that in response to environmental changes, bacterial genes will boost production of needed proteins and decrease production of those that aren’t. The study found that for bacteria in the laboratory there was little evidence of adaptive genetic response.
GTRI agile aperture antenna technology tested on autonomous ocean vehicle
June 19, 2013 4:28 pm | News | CommentsAntenna technology originally developed to quickly send and receive information through a software-defined military radio may soon be used to transmit ocean data from a wave-powered autonomous surface vehicle. The technology, the lowest-power method for maintaining a satellite uplink, automatically compensates for the movement of the antenna as the boat bobs around on the ocean surface.
Cheap, color, holographic video
June 19, 2013 4:13 pm | by Larry Hardesty, MIT News Office | News | CommentsIn the journal Nature, researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Media Lab report a new approach to generating holograms that could lead to color holographic-video displays that are much cheaper to manufacture than today’s experimental, monochromatic displays. The same technique could also increase the resolution of conventional 2-D displays.
DNA constructs antenna for solar energy
June 19, 2013 8:11 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Chalmers Univ. of Technology have found an effective solution for collecting sunlight for artificial photosynthesis. By combining self-assembling DNA molecules with simple dye molecules, the researchers have created a system that resembles nature's own antenna system.
Multiview 3-D photography made simple
June 19, 2013 7:57 am | by Larry Hardesty, MIT News Office | News | CommentsThe first commercial application of computational photography is the so-called light-field camera, which can measure not only the intensity of incoming light but also its angle. However these cameras trade a good deal of resolution for that extra angle information. That is, until now.
Japan formally OKs new nuke safety requirements
June 19, 2013 7:48 am | by MARI YAMAGUCHI - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsJapan's nuclear watchdog formally approved a set of new safety requirements for atomic power plants Wednesday, paving the way for the reopening of facilities shut down since the Fukushima disaster. The new requirements approved by the Nuclear Regulation Authority will take effect on July 8, when operators will be able to apply for inspections.
Wisconsin lawmakers approve venture capital bill
June 18, 2013 7:52 pm | by KEVIN WANG - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsState lawmakers on Tuesday approved legislation that would invest millions of dollars in public and private money in Wisconsin startups despite criticism that the investment targets only limited industries. The bipartisan legislation would create a program that invests $25 million from the state and at least $50 million in private money in young Wisconsin companies
Stop hyperventilating, say energy-efficiency researchers
June 18, 2013 2:10 pm | News | CommentsA single advanced building control now in development could slash 18%—tens of thousands of dollars—off the overall annual energy bill of the average large office building, with no loss of comfort, according to a report by researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
Printing tiny batteries
June 18, 2013 1:52 pm | News | Comments3-D printing can now be used to print lithium-ion microbatteries the size of a grain of sand. The printed microbatteries could supply electricity to tiny devices in fields from medicine to communications, including many that have lingered on laboratory benches for lack of a battery small enough to fit the device, yet provide enough stored energy to power them.
World’s most powerful microscope ready for research
June 18, 2013 1:26 pm | News | CommentsThe world’s most powerful microscope, which resides in a specially constructed room at the Univ. of Victoria, has now been fully assembled and tested, and has a lineup of scientists and businesses eager to use it. The seven-ton, 4.5-m-tall scanning transmission electron holography microscope, the first such microscope of its type, came to the university in parts last year.
Researchers design variant of main painkiller receptor
June 18, 2013 1:04 pm | News | CommentsOpioids are still the most effective class of painkillers, but they come with unwanted side effects. Designing new drugs of this type involves testing them on their corresponding receptors, but access to meaningful quantities of these receptors that work in experimental conditions has been a limiting factor. Now, researchers have developed a variant of the mu opioid receptor that has several advantages when it comes to experimentation.
A new high-energy record for LCLS
June 18, 2013 11:25 am | News | CommentsJohn Hill, a Brookhaven National Laboratory scientist, and his team watched with eager anticipation as controllers ramped up the power systems driving SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory's x-ray laser in an attempt to achieve the record high energies needed to make his experiment a runaway success. To reach the high x-ray energies they were aiming for, all of the 80 klystrons associated with LCLS would need to operate at near-peak levels.
New method helps distinguish between neighboring quantum bits
June 18, 2013 10:42 am | News | CommentsResearchers at the Univ. of New South Wales have proposed a new way to distinguish between quantum bits that are placed only a few nanometers apart in a silicon chip, taking them a step closer to the construction of a large-scale quantum computer.
Global cooling as significant as global warming
June 18, 2013 10:30 am | News | CommentsA “cold snap” 116 million years ago triggered a similar marine ecosystem crisis to the ones witnessed in the past as a result of global warming, according to recently published research. The international study confirms the link between global cooling and a crash in the marine ecosystem during the mid-Cretaceous greenhouse period.
China’s Tiahne-2 is the new world champ of supercomputing
June 18, 2013 9:27 am | News | CommentsTiahne-2, or Milky Way-2, a supercomputer developed by China's National Univ. of Defense Technology, is the new No. 1 ranked machine on the industry-standard Top500 list of the world's most powerful high-performance computing (HPC) systems.
Database helps building owners, investors evaluate energy-efficient buildings
June 18, 2013 7:32 am | News | CommentsA new database of building features and energy use data helps building managers, owners, real estate investors and lenders evaluate the financial results of energy efficiency investment projects and identify high- and low-performing buildings.
Surprising turns in magnetic thin films could lead to better data storage
June 18, 2013 7:19 am | by David L. Chandler, MIT News Office | News | CommentsA magnetic phenomenon newly discovered by Massachusetts Institute of Technology researchers could lead to much faster, denser and more energy-efficient chips for memory and computation. The findings could reduce the energy needed to store and retrieve one bit of data by a factor of 10,000.
Boeing launches plans for longer 787 jet
June 18, 2013 5:41 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsBoeing Corp. is starting work on a stretched-out version of its popular 787 Dreamliner jet, in the hope of reigniting interest in the aircraft after battery-related problems. Boeing announced the formal launch of its 787-10 program at the Paris Air Show on Tuesday and says it already has commitments from several customers, including United Airlines.
Court: 'Pay-to-delay' generic drugs can be illegal
June 17, 2013 4:31 pm | by JESSE J. HOLLAND - Associated Press - Associated Press | News | CommentsDeals between pharmaceutical corporations and their generic drug competitors, which government officials say keep cheaper forms of medicine off the market, can sometimes be illegal and therefore can be challenged in court, the Supreme Court said Monday. The justices voted 5-3 to allow the government to inspect and challenge what it calls "pay-for-delay" deals or "reverse payment settlements."
A way to detect new viruses
June 17, 2013 2:14 pm | News | CommentsIn recently published research, St. Louis Univ. researchers describe a technology that can detect new, previously unknown viruses. The technique offers the potential to screen patients for viruses even when doctors have not identified a particular virus as the likely source of an infection. In the new approach, scientists use blood serum as a biological source to categorize and discover viruses.
Is artificial sweetener a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease?
June 17, 2013 11:42 am | News | CommentsMannitol, a sugar alcohol produced by fungi, bacteria and algae, is a common component of sugar-free gum and candy. The sweetener is also used in the medical field. Now a team from Tel Aviv Univ. have found that mannitol also prevents clumps of a protein from forming in the brain—a process that is characteristic of Parkinson's disease.
Printing artificial bone
June 17, 2013 10:23 am | by Denise Brehm, Civil and Environmental Engineering | News | CommentsResearchers working to design new materials that are durable, lightweight and environmentally sustainable are increasingly looking to bone for inspiration. While researchers have come up with hierarchical structures in the design of new materials, going from a computer model to the production of physical artifacts has been a persistent challenge. Now researchers have developed an approach that allows them to turn their designs into reality.
Lilly to take over development of diabetes drug
June 17, 2013 9:16 am | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsEli Lilly and Co. will pay Canadian drug developer Transition Therapeutics Inc. $7 million and take over the development of a potential diabetes treatment heading into mid-stage clinical testing. Transition said Monday it also could receive up to $240 million in additional payments, plus royalties if the treatment is eventually approved and sold.
Noble gases hitch a ride on hydrous minerals
June 17, 2013 7:43 am | by Kevin Stacey, Brown Univ. | News | CommentsThe noble gases get their collective moniker from their tendency toward snobbishness. The six elements in the family, which includes helium and neon, don’t normally bond with other elements and they don’t dissolve into minerals the way other gases do. But now, geochemists from Brown Univ. have found a mineral structure with which the nobles deign to fraternize.
