ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• In the heart of Cygnus, NASA's Fermi reveals a cosmic-ray cocoon
• Graphene foam detects explosives, emissions better than today's gas sensors
• New technique puts chemistry breakthroughs on the fast track
• One promising puzzle piece for confirming dark matter now seems unlikely fit
• 'Fool's gold' aids discovery of new options for cheap, benign solar energy
• The art of stabilizing entangled spaghetti-like materials
• Long-lasting, near infrared-emitting material invented

In the heart of Cygnus, NASA's Fermi reveals a cosmic-ray cocoon Posted: 28 Nov 2011 02:45 PM PST The constellation Cygnus, now visible in the western sky as twilight deepens after sunset, hosts one of our galaxy's richest-known stellar construction zones. Astronomers viewing the region at visible wavelengths see only hints of this spectacular activity thanks to a veil of nearby dust clouds forming the Great Rift, a dark lane that splits the Milky Way, a faint band of light marking our galaxy's central plane.

Graphene foam detects explosives, emissions better than today's gas sensors Posted: 28 Nov 2011 10:27 AM PST A new study demonstrates how graphene foam can outperform leading commercial gas sensors in detecting potentially dangerous and explosive chemicals. The discovery opens the door for a new generation of gas sensors to be used by bomb squads, law enforcement officials, defense organizations, and in various industrial settings.

New technique puts chemistry breakthroughs on the fast track Posted: 28 Nov 2011 09:15 AM PST Scientists can now take that "a-ha" moment to go with a new method developed -- and successfully tested -- to accomplish "accelerated serendipity" and speed up the chances of an unexpected yet groundbreaking chemical discovery.

One promising puzzle piece for confirming dark matter now seems unlikely fit Posted: 28 Nov 2011 08:59 AM PST In 2008, the Italian satellite PAMELA detected a curious excess of antimatter positrons -- a startling discovery that could have been a sign of the existence of dark matter. With assistance from the Earth's magnetic field, the Fermi Gamma-ray Telescope confirms a cosmic excess of antimatter positrons, but not the spike expected if evidence of dark matter.

'Fool's gold' aids discovery of new options for cheap, benign solar energy Posted: 28 Nov 2011 08:56 AM PST Pyrite, better known as "fool's gold," was familiar to the ancient Romans and has fooled prospectors for centuries -- but has now helped researchers discover related compounds that offer new, cheap and promising options for solar energy. These new compounds, unlike some solar cell materials made from rare, expensive or toxic elements, would be benign and could be processed from some of the most abundant elements on Earth.

The art of stabilizing entangled spaghetti-like materials Posted: 28 Nov 2011 08:56 AM PST Gene therapy can only be effective if delivered by a stable complex molecule. Now, scientists have determined the conditions that would stabilize complex molecular structures that are subject to inherent attractions and repulsions triggered by electric charges at the surfaces of the molecules.

Long-lasting, near infrared-emitting material invented Posted: 20 Nov 2011 10:47 AM PST Materials that emit visible light after being exposed to sunlight are commonplace and can be found in everything from emergency signage to glow-in-the-dark stickers. But until now, scientists have had little success creating materials that emit light in the near-infrared range, a portion of the spectrum that only can be seen with the aid of night vision devices.

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