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Thursday, November 17, 2011

ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

A realistic look at the promises and perils of nanomedicine

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 11:30 AM PST

Is the emerging field of nanomedicine a breathtaking technological revolution that promises remarkable new ways of diagnosing and treating diseases? Or does it portend the release of dangerous nanoparticles, nanorobots or nanoelectronic devices that will wreak havoc in the body? A new review of more than 500 studies on the topic concludes that neither scenario is likely.

New 'smart' material could help tap medical potential of tissue-penetrating light

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 11:30 AM PST

Scientists are reporting development and successful initial testing of the first practical "smart" material that may supply the missing link in efforts to use in medicine a form of light that can penetrate four inches into the human body. The new polymer or plastic-like material has potential for use in diagnosing diseases and engineer new human tissues in the lab.

Evidence for 'great lake' on Europa and potential new habitat for life

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 10:29 AM PST

In a significant finding in the search for life beyond Earth, scientists from the University of Texas at Austin and elsewhere have discovered what appears to be a body of liquid water the volume of the North American Great Lakes locked inside the icy shell of Jupiter's moon Europa. The water could represent a potential habitat for life. The authors speculate many more such lakes might exist throughout the shallow regions of Europa's shell.

Magnetic fields set stage for birth of new stars

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 10:21 AM PST

Astronomers have, for the first time, measured the alignment of magnetic fields in gigantic clouds of gas and dust in a distant galaxy. Their results suggest that such magnetic fields play a key role in channeling matter to form denser clouds, and thus in setting the stage for the birth of new stars.

New material can enhance energy, computer, lighting technologies

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 09:47 AM PST

Electrical engineers have developed a new compound that could help improve solar-energy generation, computers, lighting technology and Internet capabilities.

Unusual liquid crystal structures on water surface

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 05:17 AM PST

Some liquid crystals form monolayers on water surface. When compressed from sides, such films of monomolecular thickness can wrinkle like fabric on a flat, smooth table, pulled together with palms simultaneously from both sides. With increasing surface pressure, the wrinkles of the monolayer fold up and form subsequent layers. New mechanisms of multilayer formation are responsible for creation of liquid crystal films with a structure that has never been observed before.

Cool clouds of Carina: APEX reveals new view of star formation in the Carina Nebula

Posted: 16 Nov 2011 03:22 AM PST

Observations made with the APEX telescope in submillimeter-wavelength light reveal the cold dusty clouds from which stars form in the Carina Nebula. This site of violent star formation, which plays host to some of the highest-mass stars in our galaxy, is an ideal arena in which to study the interactions between these young stars and their parent molecular clouds.

New lightning-fast, efficient nanoscale data transmission

Posted: 15 Nov 2011 10:30 AM PST

A new nanoscale light-emitting diode transmits data at ultrafast rates while using thousands of times less energy than current technologies. It is a major step forward for on-chip data transmission, the researchers say.

No extraordinary effects from microwave and mobile phone heating: Study quantifies effects of electric field-induced versus conventional heating

Posted: 15 Nov 2011 10:28 AM PST

The effect of microwave heating and cell phone radiation on sample material is no different than a temperature increase, according to scientists in a new study.

Perfect micro rings woven from muscle fibers: Biological model system that dead-ends in an 'absorbing state'

Posted: 15 Nov 2011 06:46 AM PST

Supplied with sufficient energy, a freight train would ride the rails as far as they go. But nature also knows systems whose dynamics suddenly turn into a kind of endless loop. Like in a hamster wheel, a train caught up in such a system would continue running, but without moving forward. Scientists in Germany have now succeeded in building a simple model system consisting of only three components to study the laws of such so-called absorbing states.

Why solar wind is rhombic-shaped: Temperature and energy equipartition in cosmic plasmas explained

Posted: 15 Nov 2011 04:39 AM PST

Why the temperatures in the solar wind are almost the same in certain directions, and why different energy densities are practically identical, was until now not clear. With a new approach to calculating instability criteria for plasmas, researchers have solved both problems at once. They were the first to incorporate the effects of collisions of the solar wind particles in their model. This explains experimental data significantly better than previous calculations and can also be transferred to cosmic plasmas outside our solar system.

Better batteries: New technology improves both energy capacity and charge rate in rechargeable batteries

Posted: 14 Nov 2011 11:20 AM PST

Engineers have created an electrode for lithium-ion batteries that allows the rechargeable batteries to hold a charge up to 10 times greater than current technology. The batteries also can charge 10 times faster than current batteries. The researchers combined two chemical engineering approaches to address two major battery limitations -- energy capacity and charge rate -- in one fell swoop. The technology could pave the way for better batteries for cellphones, iPods and electric cars.
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