Information Technologies
New research could let vehicles, robots collaborate with humans
May 3, 2013 7:39 am | by Helen Knight, MIT News correspondent | News | CommentsYou get into your car and ask it to get you home in time for the start of the big game, stopping off at your favorite Chinese restaurant on the way for takeout. But the car informs you that the road past the Chinese restaurant is closed for repairs, and you will have to choose a different place. You select a nearby Korean restaurant from the options the car suggests. Autonomous devices could soon collaborate with humans in this way.
Intel names Krzanich as chipmaker's next CEO
May 2, 2013 2:44 pm | by PETER SVENSSON - AP Technology Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsIntel's chief operating officer, Brian Krzanich, will become its next CEO in two weeks, tasked with steering the world's largest chipmaker through an industry shake-up that is seeing tablets and smartphones overshadow Intel's base in personal computers.
New imaging technique visualizes bio-metals and molecules simultaneously
May 2, 2013 2:25 pm | by Juliette Savin, RIKEN | News | CommentsMetal elements and molecules interact in the body, but visualizing them together has always been a challenge. Researchers at RIKEN in Japan have developed a new molecular imaging technology that enables them to image bio-metals and bio-molecules at the same time in a live mouse. This new technology will enable researchers to study the complex interactions between metal elements and molecules in living organisms.
Computer algorithms find genetic cancer networks
May 2, 2013 10:44 am | News | CommentsResearchers at Washington University in St. Louis, using powerful algorithms developed by computer scientists at Brown University, have assembled the most complete genetic profile yet of acute myeloid leukemia, an aggressive form of blood cancer.
Scientists make world’s smallest stop-motion film
May 2, 2013 9:22 am | News | CommentsEven without certification by Guinness World Records, it would be easy to believe a short, 250-frame film recently created by an IBM Research team is the world’s smallest. Named “A Boy and His Atom,” the movie was created by precisely placing thousands of atoms using a scanning tunneling microscope. This type of atomic-level control is the result of years of efforts by IBM to determine the lower limits for storing data.
Use of laser light yields versatile manipulation of a quantum bit
May 2, 2013 8:42 am | News | CommentsBy using light, researchers at University of California, Santa Barbara have manipulated the quantum state of a single atomic-sized defect in diamond—the nitrogen-vacancy center—in a method that not only allows for more unified control than conventional processes, but is more versatile, and opens up the possibility of exploring new solid-state quantum systems.
Transfer of ultraprecise time signals over a wireless optical channel
May 2, 2013 8:18 am | News | CommentsBy bouncing eye-safe laser pulses off a mirror on a hillside, researchers at NIST have transferred ultraprecise time signals through open air with unprecedented precision equivalent to the "ticking" of the world's best next-generation atomic clocks. The demonstration shows how next-generation atomic clocks at different locations could be linked wirelessly to improve distribution of time and frequency information.
A text message a day keeps the asthma attack away
May 2, 2013 8:01 am | News | CommentsSimply sending children with asthma a text message each day asking about their symptoms and providing knowledge about their condition can lead to improved health outcomes. In a study, pediatric patients who were asked questions about their symptoms and provided information about asthma via SMS text messages showed improved pulmonary function and a better understanding of their condition within four months.
Physical by smartphone becoming real possibility
May 2, 2013 3:35 am | by LAURAN NEERGAARD - AP Medical Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsIt's not a "Star Trek" tricorder, but by hooking a variety of gadgets onto a smartphone you could almost get a complete physical—without the paper gown or even a visit to the doctor's office. Blood pressure? Just plug the arm cuff into the phone for a quick reading. Heart okay? Put your fingers in the right spot, and the squiggly rhythm of an EKG appears on the phone's screen.
Observations of massive neutron star confirm relativity theory
May 1, 2013 12:01 pm | News | CommentsAn international research team led by astronomers from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy used a collection of large radio and optical telescopes to investigate in detail a pulsar that weighs twice as much as the sun. This neutron star, the most massive known to date, has provided new insights into the emission of gravitational radiation and serves as an interstellar laboratory for general relativity in extreme conditions.
New theory could streamline operations management, cloud computing
May 1, 2013 11:22 am | by Larry Hardesty, MIT News Office | News | CommentsIt’s often said that we live in an age of increased specialization. But in a series of recent papers, researchers have shown that, in a number of different contexts, a little versatility can go a long way. Their theoretical analyses could have implications for operations management, cloud computing—and possibly even health care delivery and manufacturing.
Material loss protects teeth against fatigue failure
May 1, 2013 9:07 am | News | CommentsComputer simulations conducted in Germany have shown that the reduction of natural dental wear might be the main cause for widely spread non-carius cervical lesions—the loss of enamel and dentine at the base of the crown—in our teeth. The discovery was made by examining the biomechanical behavior of teeth using finite element analysis methods typically applied to engineering problems.
Older is wiser: Study shows software developer's skills improve over time
April 30, 2013 10:08 am | News | CommentsThere is a perception in some tech circles that older programmers aren’t able to keep pace with rapidly changing technology, and that they are discriminated against in the software field. But a new study from North Carolina State University indicates that the knowledge and skills of programmers actually improve over time—and that older programmers know as much (or more) than their younger peers.
Robots able to reach through clutter with whole-arm tactile sensing
April 30, 2013 9:57 am | News | CommentsWhether reaching for a book out of a cluttered cabinet or pruning a bush in the backyard, a person’s arm frequently makes contact with objects during everyday tasks. Animals do it too, when foraging for food, for example. Much in the same way, robots are now able to intelligently maneuver within clutter, gently making contact with objects while accomplishing a task. This new control method has wide applications.
Computer scientists suggest new spin on origins of evolvability
April 29, 2013 8:53 am | News | CommentsScientists have long observed that species seem to have become increasingly capable of evolving in response to changes in the environment. But computer science researchers now say that the popular explanation of competition to survive in nature may not actually be necessary for evolvability to increase.
Researchers create shape-shifting mobile devices
April 29, 2013 8:19 am | News | CommentsAt a conference this week in Europe on human-machine interfaces, a research team from the U.K. will introduce the concept of “shape resolution”, which it has used to compare the resolution of six prototypes built using new technologies in shape-changing material, such as shape memory alloy and electro active polymer. One example is the Morphees, a self-actuated flexible mobile device that can change shape on-demand.
Tracking gunfire with a smartphone
April 26, 2013 8:41 am | by David Salisbury, Vanderbilt University | News | CommentsYou are walking down the street with a friend. A shot is fired. The two of you duck behind the nearest cover and you pull out your smartphone. A map of the neighborhood pops up on its screen with a large red arrow pointing in the direction the shot came from. A team has made such a scenario possible by developing a system that transforms a smartphone into a shooter location system.
What did Alexander Graham Bell's voice sound like?
April 26, 2013 8:34 am | News | CommentsLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s sound-restoration experts have done it again. They’ve helped to digitally recover a 128-year-old recording of Alexander Graham Bell’s voice, enabling people to hear the famed inventor speak for the first time. The recording ends with Bell saying “in witness whereof, hear my voice, Alexander Graham Bell.”
Piezoelectric taxels convert motion to electronic signals for tactile imaging
April 26, 2013 8:20 am | News | CommentsUsing bundles of vertical zinc oxide nanowires, researchers have fabricated arrays of piezotronic transistors capable of converting mechanical motion directly into electronic controlling signals. The arrays could help give robots a more adaptive sense of touch, provide better security in handwritten signatures, and offer new ways for humans to interact with electronic devices.
Bold move forward in molecular analyses
April 25, 2013 2:42 pm | News | CommentsA dramatic leap forward in the ability of scientists to study the structural states of macromolecules such as proteins and nanoparticles in solution has been achieved by a pair of researchers with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The researchers have developed a new set of metrics for analyzing data acquired through small angle scattering experiments with X-rays or neutrons.
Imaging technology could reveal cellular secrets
April 25, 2013 2:30 pm | News | CommentsResearchers have married two biological imaging technologies, creating a new way to learn how good cells go bad. Being able to study a cell's internal workings in fine detail would likely yield insights into the physical and biochemical responses to its environment. The technology, which combines an atomic force microscope and nuclear magnetic resonance system, could help researchers study individual cancer cells.
Scientists image nanoparticles in action
April 25, 2013 8:49 am | News | CommentsThe macroscopic effects of certain nanoparticles on human health have long been clear to the naked eye. What scientists have lacked is the ability to see the detailed movements of individual particles that give rise to those effects. Scientists at Virginia Tech have invented a technique for imaging nanoparticle dynamics with atomic resolution as these dynamics occur in a liquid environment.
Engineers generate world-record millimeter-wave output power from nanoscale CMOS
April 25, 2013 7:44 am | News | CommentsA team of electrical engineers from Columbia University has generated a record amount of power output—by a power of five—using silicon-based nanoscale CMOS technology for millimeter-wave power amplifiers. Power amplifiers are used in communications and sensor systems to boost power levels for reliable transmission of signals over long distances as required by the given application.
Team Effort
April 24, 2013 2:16 pm | by Paul Livingstone | Articles | CommentsAdvances in microscopy and fundamental science are closely intertwined. Without prior understanding of the basis for research, the tools of microscopy are useless. Without microscopy, an understanding of how materials, chemistry, or life behave(s) at the molecular and atomic level cannot be discovered.
FDA device will screen for fake medicines overseas
April 24, 2013 1:19 pm | by MATTHEW PERRONE - AP Health Writer - Associated Press | News | CommentsU.S. health officials are making a high-tech screening device available to African authorities to help spot counterfeit malaria pills in hopes that the technology may eventually be used to combat the fake drug trade worldwide. The FDA announced Wednesday that regulators in Ghana will begin using a federally developed handheld device to screen for fake or diluted versions of two common malaria pills.
