Gizmag: Science and Education

World's first blue roses to go on sale

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:33:04 +1100

They may not be exactly blue in color, but the long-awaited commercial release of the blue rose is set to take place in Japan next week (November 3). Thought to be impossible to create because they lack the blue pigment delphinidin, Australia-based Florigene and its Japanese parent company Suntory Holdings (known more for its beer than its floral conquests) began working together in 1990 to create a blue rose by introducing a blue gene from panzies and then irises into roses. It took until 2004 before the team could announce the successful development of blue roses. But before you go ordering a dozen or so for your loved one, check out the price – around ¥2,000-3,000 (US$22-32) each...

Tags: Blue, CSIRO, Genetics, Rose

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The interactive 3D Virtual Autopsy Table

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 09:17:43 +1000

Swedish researchers have developed an interactive touchscreen 3D autopsy table that allows pathologists to examine virtual representations of real bodies in minute detail and from numerous viewing angles. Using data provided by scans of an actual body, the table allows the user to remove layers such as skin and muscle, add or remove tissue and circulatory systems, zoom in and out and cut through sections with a virtual knife. The video below is a "must watch"...

Tags: 3D, Autopsy, Health, Image, Interactive, Medical, Multitouch, Research, Screen, Software, Touchscreen, Virtual, Visualization

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NASA IBEX spacecraft shows where we sit in the galaxy

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:26:44 +1000

Move over Google Maps, NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) spacecraft has given scientists the tools to construct the first comprehensive sky map of our solar system and where it resides in the Milky Way galaxy. NASA says the new view will change the way researchers study the interaction between our galaxy and sun...

Tags: Cosmic, Galaxy, Ibex, Mission, NASA, Space, Spacecraft

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Is there something in the hair? The tale of a solar cell made with human hair

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:37:45 +1000

Debate is good. Debate is healthy. Debate is currently raging after an article recently appeared on the UK's Daily Mail website announcing a revolutionary solar cell that's made using human hair. A group of teenage students from Nepal claim to have replaced expensive doped silicon used in conventional solar panels with cheap and readily available human hair to produce a cell capable of generating 9V (18W) of electricity. Curiosity got the better of Gizmag's Paul Ridden, who contacted one of the team to find out more...

Tags: Batteries, Electricity, Energy, hair, Panels, Prototype, Solar, Technology

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NASA live broadcast of LCROSS impact

Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:42:57 +1000

NASA's Lunar Prospector first detected some hydrogen signatures in craters on the dark side of the moon in 1999. Ever since, researchers have been keen to confirm the presence of water on the moon. The Lunar CRater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) is tasked with crashing through the mists of speculation and conjecture and discover the truth. And you can watch all the action as it happens...

Tags: Broadcast, Centaur, Crash, Impact, LCROSS, Mission, Moon, NASA

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Cosmic rays hit Space-Age high

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 20:36:45 +1000

NASA has a warning for everyone planning a trip to Mars in the near future – it might be a good idea to wrap yourself in an extra layer of tinfoil when you travel According to sensors on NASA's ACE (Advanced Composition Explorer) spacecraft, galactic cosmic rays have just hit a Space Age high, reaching levels 19 percent higher than observed in the past 50 years and sparking a rethink on the radiation shielding needed for astronauts...

Tags: Cosmic, Mars, NASA, Rays

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Lotus leaf inspires dust-busting shield for space gear

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 09:56:22 +1000

Finding inspiration from nature in order to refine and advance modern technologies is nothing new; Mercedes’ bionic car was an interesting example and we’ve also seen a new ‘smart fabric’ based on the design of pine cones. Perhaps one of the most inspiring species, certainly in the plant world, is the lotus, which has already contributed to the development of fog-free windscreens and other surfaces along with improving the efficiency of solar cells. Now NASA is looking to the Lotus Leaf to develop a non-stick surface for use on spaceflight equipment...

Tags: Bacteria, Coating, Leaf, Lotus, NASA, Northrop Grumman, Smart Fabric, Space, Surfaces

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Water found on the moon – what will it mean for the future?

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:18:43 +1000

Newspapers and websites around the world are buzzing with the news that water and hydroxyl (hydrogen and oxygen) molecules have been found in the polar regions of the moon. NASA announced yesterday that instruments aboard three separate spacecraft revealed that water molecules were present, although in relatively small amounts. It was also discovered that hydroxyl also existed in the lunar soil. Although the amount of water found is small, it is exciting in terms of potential for the possibilities of establishing a lunar base and even for creating spacecraft fuel...

Tags: Hydroxyl, NASA, Space, Space Travel, Spacecraft, Water

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Nullarbor fireball cameras lead scientists to location of rare meteorite

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 10:12:19 +1000

Not long ago, Gizmag featured an article about scientists capturing a rare image of upwards lightning. Now a different set of ‘men in white coats’ has taken shots of fireballs streaking across the night sky that then led to the discovery of a tiny and extremely rare meteorite in Australia’s vast Nullarbor Plain. Not only that, the group also traced the meteorite’s roots back to its orbit and the asteroid from where it came. ..

Tags: Asteroid, Astronomy, Australia, CSIRO, Fireballs, Meteorite, Nullarbor

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Swift snaps our best-ever ultraviolet image of neighboring Andromeda Galaxy

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 11:51:25 +1000

In a galaxy far, far away … about 2.5 million light years, in fact, lie approximately 20,000 hot, young stars and dense clusters that comprise the Andromeda Galaxy. The galaxy, known as M31 in the constellation Andromeda, was recently captured by an ultraviolet optical telescope aboard NASA’s Swift satellite, and delivers the highest-resolution view of a neighboring spiral galaxy ever attained in the ultraviolet...

Tags: Andromeda, Galaxy, Goddard, Image, Light-years, NASA, Satellite, Stars, Swift, Telescope, Ultraviolet

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Astronomers like what they see from rejuvenated NASA Hubble Space Telescope

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:39:46 +1000

New images from the rejuvenated, more powerful Hubble Space Telescope have universally delighted astronomers. Last week, observations from four of its six operating science instruments were released by NASA. They include colorful, multi-wavelength pictures of far-flung galaxies, a densely-packed star cluster, an eerie ‘pillar of creation’, and a ‘butterfly’ nebula. ..

Tags: e2v, Hubble, Images, NASA, Telescope, Universe

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The coldest, driest, calmest place on Earth

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:30:04 +1000

When you’re planning your next holiday, a site known as Ridge A that sits 4,053m (2.5 miles) high up on the Antarctic Plateau, will probably be one of the first places to strike off the list. Although the research team that discovered it says it could be the calmest place on Earth, it is also thought to be the coldest and driest. A joint U.S.-Australian team pinpointed the site by combining data from satellites, ground stations and climate models in an attempt to find the best observatory site in the world by assessing the many factors that affect astronomy, such as cloud cover, temperature, sky-brightness, water vapor, wind speeds and atmospheric turbulence...

Tags: Antarctic, Astronomy, Australia, Space, Telescope, University of New South Wales

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Scientists catch lucky break with 'upward lightning' photo

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 16:16:49 +1000

Scientists have scored a lucky break by capturing a one-second image and the electrical fingerprint of a rarely-seen ‘gigantic jet’ - a huge lightning that flowed 40 miles upward from the top of a storm. Images of highly charged meteorological events like this have only been recorded on five occasions since 2001. The team from Duke University team captured a one-second view and magnetic field measurements that scientists hope will give them a much clearer understanding about these occurrences...

Tags: Duke University, Electricity, Gigantic jets, Lightning, Scientists

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X-ray telescope to shed light on dark energy

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 17:45:42 +1000

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) and Russia’s Roskosmos space agency are joining forces to try and shed some light on the poorly understood phenomenon referred to as ‘dark energy’. In 2012 the German 'extended Roentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array'(eROSITA) X-ray telescope will be taken into orbit on board the Russian Spektrum Roentgen Gamma (SRG) satellite to start searching for black holes and dark matter in an attempt to answer why the expansion of the universe is accelerating instead of slowing down...

Tags: Astronomy, Cosmic, Erosita, Matter, Satellite, Space, Telescope, Universe, X-ray

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NASA confirms building blocks of life found on comets

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 11:40:39 +1000

Fresh evidence has been revealed to support the theory that life on Earth began in space. NASA’s Stardust probe, a specially-designed comet ‘chaser’, successfully collected particles shed from Comet Wild 2 in 2004, and NASA scientists have since confirmed for the first time that amino acids can indeed be found on these extraterrestrial bodies. ..

Tags: Comet, Discovered, Life, NASA, Research, Scientists, Space, Spacecraft

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Nature can still surprise us: more than 350 new species found in Himalayas

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:53:19 +1000

You’d think there’d be nothing new in the world to discover, but Mother Nature still has a few surprises up her sleeve. According to a new report from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), scientists have discovered 353 new species in the eastern Himalayas over the past decade. They include a ‘flying frog’ that glides using long webbed feet, fossil evidence of a 100 million-year-old gecko, and the world’s shortest deer which, when fully grown, stands just 20 inches tall. ..

Tags: Biodiversity, Deer, Discovered, Fossil, Frog, Gecko, Himalayas, Miniature, Muntjac, Species, WWF

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Large Hadron Collider readies for half-power restart

Wed, 12 Aug 2009 11:43:13 +1000

The date 10 September 2008 was forseen by some as the end of the world, at least if you believed scientists who were trying to pull the plug on an experiment that some dubbed the ‘Doomsday Test’. As it turned out a faulty electrical connection brought proceedings to a halt. Now the $9 billion ‘atom-smasher’, aka the Large Hadron Collider, which was developed by CERN to recreate the chemical reactions that took place when the universe came into existence around 14 billion years ago, is gearing up for a restart...

Tags: atoms, Electrons, Research, Universe

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Rosetta Stone TOTALe - language learning in an online, social environment

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 09:46:44 +1000

Rosetta Stone, the well-known language learning software that has helped millions worldwide learn a language without translation or memorization has moved into the online and Web 2.0 realm with it’s new language learning solution TOTALe. TOTALe combines three elements - the Rosetta Course, offered in 31 languages, Rosetta Studio, where you can practice with native-speaking Studio Coaches and other learners at your level in a real-time, and Rosetta World, a structured online community where you can practice and hone your language skills with native speakers and other learners at your level through fun and engaging games...

Tags: Language, Learning, Technology

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The search for ice on the moon heats up

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 12:58:11 +1000

Special sensing technology developed by Raytheon for the US Navy's miniaturized radio frequency system is aboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), one of two spacecraft hoping to find photographic evidence that the polar regions of the moon contain ice. Until now, man hasn’t been able to confirm if there is ice on the moon because it is thought to exist only in permanently dark patches, or poles, on the lunar landscape – which means we haven’t been able to take detailed photos yet. NASA in particular is interested in determining the extent to which lunar ice exists, if at all, as the agency prepares for future manned exploration and possible habitation on the moon...

Tags: Chandrayaan-, High-resolution, Lunar, Mini-rf, Mission, Moon, NASA, Raytheon, Reconnaissance, Spacecraft

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Scientist predicts functional artificial brain in 10 years

Wed, 29 Jul 2009 19:29:34 +1000

The jury is out on whether scientific and technological advancement will ultimately sound the death-knell for the human race, but such concerns have not stopped Henry Markram, director of the Blue Brain Project, from enthusing about the potential benefits of a synthetic human brain at TED Global 2009...

Tags: Brain, Evolution, Neurological, Research

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‘Beauty’ of sunspots revealed by supercomputers

Mon, 27 Jul 2009 16:13:32 +1000

An international team of scientists led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has created the first-ever comprehensive computer model of sunspots. It is hoped the use of the supercomputer modeling - the supercomputers undertake 76 trillion calculations per second - will help scientists unlock mysteries of the sun and its impacts on Earth...

Tags: Computer, Computers, Energy, IBM, Power, Research, Solar, Weather

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Carl Zeiss launches new MERLIN electron microscope

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:29:33 +1000

Like the wizard from the King Arthur legend, the new MERLIN electron microscope has a few tricks up its sleeve. The new Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope, more conveniently described as a FESEM, from Carl Zeiss SMT AG is designed to overcome the standard trade-offs between image resolution and the analytical capability...

Tags: Carl Zeiss, Image, Microscope

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Nanocoating to help monitor safety of aircraft, bridges

Thu, 21 May 2009 15:10:12 +1000

One of the promising applications for the emerging field of nanotechnology is the monitoring of large-scale infrastructures, such as bridges. The latest foray into this field comes from the Queensland University of Technology's (QUT) School of Engineering – it is studying a new nanocomposite material that could improve the maintenance of large-scale infrastructure and provide early warning of any deterioration. ..

Tags: Engineering, Maintenance, Nanotechnology

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Geckos could hold the key to next-gen lenses

Tue, 12 May 2009 15:30:45 +1000

There’s a lot more to the Gecko than a cute little acrobatic creature that has sticky feet and can walk up walls. The helmet gecko - a nocturnal lizard - is among a few living creatures that can see colors at night. The trick to this unique characteristic is a series of distinct concentric zones of different refractive powers, according to a recent study published by the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology. The research team hopes these studies may provide insight into creating better cameras and contact lenses. ..

Tags: Animals, Cameras, Gecko, Multi-focal, Optical, Research

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Researchers develop smart monitoring device for brain injury

Fri, 08 May 2009 18:41:25 +1000

A multi-purpose “lab on a tube” developed by Engineers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) could provide significant advance in the treatment of traumatic brain injury. A serious knock on the head results in not only the initial damage, but a second wave of injury caused by swelling and lack of oxygen among other factors. Currently, the status of these injuries can only be intermittently examined, but the “lab on a tube” gives medicos the capability to continuously monitor crucial physiological characteristics...

Tags: Brain, Medical, Prototype, Research, Sensors, Trauma

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