The NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini spacecraft has confirmed earlier suspicions of an unseen moon hidden in a gap in Saturn’s outer A ring. A new image shows the new moon and the waves it raises in the surrounding ring material.
The moon, provisionally named S/2005 S1, was first seen in a time-lapse sequence of images taken on 1 May 2005, as Cassini began its climb to higher inclinations in orbit around Saturn. A day later, an even closer view was obtained, which allowed the moon’
Based on a recent study, work fatigue, working overtime, job demands and dissatisfaction in combining paid work and family life are associated with weight gain.
A recently published study is part of the ongoing Helsinki Health Study, carried out at the University of Helsinki, Department of Public Health. The study population consisted of 7000 women and 2000 men, aged 40-60y. All participants are employees of the City of Helsinki, therefore, it was possible to examine the associat
Scientists at The University of Nottingham have successfully levitated diamond and some of the heaviest elements, including lead and platinum.
Using liquid oxygen — the main component in many rocket fuels — to increase the buoyancy created by a specially designed superconducting magnet, they could now, in theory, levitate an object with a density 15 times larger than that of osmium, the heaviest metal known in nature.
The science behind the research could be used to devel
Finding the ’peculiar’ ancestor
A geologist from Washington University in St. Louis is developing new techniques to render a more coherent story of how primitive life arose and diverged on Earth — with implications for Mars.
Carrine Blank, Ph.D., Washington University assistant professor of earth and planetary sciences in Arts & Sciences, has some insight concerning terrestrial microbes that could lead to provocative conclusions about the nature of life on
’Good to the last amino acid’
A computer scientist at Washington University in St. Louis has applied software that he has developed to the genome of a worm and has found 150 genes that were missed by previous genome analysis methods. Moreover, using the software, he and his colleagues have developed predictions for the existence of a whopping 1, 119 more genes.
Michael Brent, Ph.D., Washington University professor of computer science and engineering, used hi
Solar physicists have observed the smallest ever coronal mass ejection (CME) – a type of explosion where plasma from the Sun is thrown out into space, sometimes striking the Earth and damaging orbiting satellites. The observation has come as a great surprise to scientists and has turned previous ideas up-side-down.
To date studies of these phenomena have focussed on large explosions which are easier to detect and which have massive footprints on the Sun, sometimes covering thousan
Obesity rates are continuing to rise among both children and adults worldwide. Obesity is a risk factor for development of a variety of complications, including type 2 diabetes, and an increase in the rates of such obesity-associated diseases has been seen among adults. However, a review article in the May issue of The Journal of Pediatrics reports that the rate of type 2 diabetes among children worldwide also appears to have increased significantly over the last 15 years.
We
In a spectacular kick-off to its first season of prime ring viewing, which began last month, the Cassini spacecraft has confirmed earlier suspicions of an unseen moon hidden in a gap in Saturn’s outer A ring. A new image and movie show the new moon and the waves it raises in the surrounding ring material.
The moon, provisionally named S/2005 S1, was first seen in a time-lapse sequence of images taken on May 1, 2005, as Cassini began its climb to higher inclinations in orbit ar
Penn State and Philips researchers have merged the best features of their respective approaches to produce a new mathematical model that describes the behavior of the MOS transistor in a wide class of integrated circuits found in the majority of electronic devices from computers to digital watches to communications systems.
Certain circuits can only be simulated accurately using the new approach, known as the PSP model, including passive mixers used in mobile phones to increase bat
Adolescents who don’t get enough sleep might be jeopardizing their athletic performance, and high school sports teams on the west coast may be at a disadvantage if they play east coast rivals, says Mary Carskadon, PhD, of the Bradley Hasbro Children’s Research Center.
Carskadon, a leader in the field of sleep research, compared the results of studies that measured sleep patterns and circadian rhythms in children and adolescents in the May 24 issue of Clinics in Spor
Planetary protection: X-ray super-flares aid formation of ’solar systems’
New results from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory about the Orion Nebula imply super-flares torched our young solar system. Such X-ray flares likely affected the planet-forming disk around the early sun, and may have enhanced the survival chances of Earth.
By focusing on the Orion Nebula almost continuously for 13 days, a team of scientists used Chandra to obtain the deepest X-ray observations eve
Mark Hebblewhite can look at specific climate statistics from the north Pacific Ocean and tell you how the elk are doing in Banff National Park. The University of Alberta doctoral student is the first researcher to show a correlation between the North Pacific Oscillation (NPO) and a mammal population.
Based on many climate-related ocean measurements, researchers are able to determine positive, average and negative NPO values. A positive NPO translates into a milder climate in mo
New devices may provide power for decades
Using some of the same manufacturing techniques that produce microchips, researchers have created a porous-silicon diode that may lead to improved betavoltaics. Such devices convert low levels of radiation into electricity and can have useful lives spanning several decades.
While producing as little as one-thousandth of the power of conventional chemical batteries, the new “BetaBattery” concept is more efficient and potentia
Scientists at the University of Nottingham have successfully levitated diamond and some of the heaviest elements, including lead and platinum. Using liquid oxygen to increase the buoyancy created by a specially designed superconducting magnet, they could now levitate a hypothetical object with a density 15 times larger than that of the densest known material, osmium. This research is published today (11th May 2005) in the New Journal of Physics co-owned by the Institute of Physics and Deutsche P
The discovery of a fundamental new route into cells may lead to new methods of drug delivery and to a better understanding of viral infection.
Researchers from The University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB), and the Centre for Microscopy and Microanalysis used electron microscopy to uncover new structures, 100,000th of a mm in size, which are involved in the very first step of particle and nutrient uptake into cells.
Cells require a consta
Technology developed at UC Davis may be gentler, more accurate than mammography
A new breast screening technology that may be able to detect tumors earlier than mammography — without the need for uncomfortable breast compression — is being tested in patients at the University of California, Davis, Medical Center. Developed at UC Davis, the machine is the first breast CT to reach clinical testing in a generation. An early prototype was tested in the 1970s, but abandoned as im
Feedback
