The Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a real-time magnetic imaging system that enables criminal investigators to “see” signs of tampering in audiotapes—erasing, overdubbing and other alterations—while listening to the tapes. The new system,which permits faster screening and more accurate audiotape analysis than currently possible, recently was delivered to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and will be evaluated for its poss
Novel methods for transplanting cells into areas damaged by spinal cord injury and experimental drug treatments show promise for aiding those suffering from injury to their spinal cord.
“New animal research brings increasing hope for sufferers of spinal cord injury,” says Oswald Steward, PhD, of the Reeve-Irvine Research Center at the University of California, Irvine, College of Medicine. “Studies are beginning to invalidate one of the longest held ’truths’ in medicine
A new technology is being developed that can turn raw sewage into raw power. The device, called a microbial fuel cell, not only treats wastewater, but also provides a clean energy source with the potential for enormous financial savings, according to scientists at Pennsylvania State University.
Although power output is still relatively low, they say the technology is improving rapidly and eventually could be used to run a small wastewater treatment plant, which would be especiall
Yesterday, an important milestone was reached in the development of ESA’s GOCE (Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer) mission, when a contract, worth €7.8 million, was signed between ESA and the Institute for Astronomical and Physical Geodesy (IAPG) from the Technical University of Munich.
The contract means that the scientific data resulting from the GOCE mission will be analysed by a consortium of 10 European universities and research institutes led by
Cassini-Huygens, the joint NASA/ESA/ASI space mission has successfully made a close encounter with Saturn’s moon, Titan. This was confirmed in the early hours of this morning as the first information and pictures were beamed back via NASA’s Deep Space Network tracking station in Madrid, Spain. As anticipated, the spacecraft came within 1,200 kilometres (750 miles) of Titan’s surface.
At the time, Cassini was about 1.3 billion kilometres (826 million miles) from Earth. Numerous ima
Cats, like humans, can develop stress-related illness, University of Edinburgh experts have found. Significant life-changes like moving house or the arrival of a new member of the family can lead to bladder problems in some cats, say the animal specialists. But the biggest stressor of all for a cat is when it doesn’t get along with other cats in the house, studies have shown.
Cat health professionals at the University’s Hospital for Small Animals studied the lifestyles of
Multi-rate, ultra-short laser pulses — with wave forms shaped like dolphin chirps — offer a new approach to help optical wireless signals penetrate clouds, fog and other adverse weather conditions, say Penn State engineers.
The new approach could help bring optical bandwidth, capable of carrying huge amounts of information, to applications ranging from wireless communication between air and ground vehicles on the battlefield to short links between college campus buildings to met
Living on a cruise ship is a feasible and cost-effective option to assisted living facilities, and the services offered on a cruise ship parallel — even surpass — what is provided in senior care facilities, according to a study in the November issue of the Journal of the American Geriatric Society.
“Offering many amenities, such as three meals a day with escorts to meals, physicians on site and housekeeping/laundry services, cruise ship could be considered a floating assisted li
Ever catch a glimpse of someone but can’t quite fit a name to go with the face? While it’s something that happens to everyone, for older people especially, difficulty in retrieving names is a common frustration.
Scientists at the University of Arizona in Tucson are trying to determine what goes on inside the brain when it sees a face. How, for instance, does the brain recognize faces and retrieve the names to go with them? Also, how does the brain determine whether the
’LigAmp’ highly sensitive
Scientists have designed a new molecular tool, dubbed “LigAmp,” to pinpoint DNA mutations among thousands of cells, the equivalent of searching for a single typo in an entire library of books. Preliminary studies in a small number of cell lines and body fluids show the ultra-sensitive test may help detect microscopic cancer and HIV drug resistance.
“Other molecular tests make it very difficult to locate a mutation in a particular cell surrou
Research is racing to help healthcare professionals further understand how periodontal diseases are linked to cardiovascular disease. A study published in a recent issue of the Journal of Periodontology explains another reason why people with periodontal diseases are at a significant risk factor for coronary artery disease (CAD).
The study looked at 108 patients with CAD with a mean age of 59.2 +/- 10.9 years and a group of 62 people without CAD with a similar mean age (57.7 +/- 8.7 years).
While promoting physical activity and encouraging people to limit the time they spend watching television are important throughout life, those efforts are critical before adolescence, a new University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill investigation concludes.
That’s because the physical activity picture worsens rather than improves as teens make the transition into young adulthood, UNC researchers found in the largest national study of changes in exercise patterns over time.
Researchers devise optical method to safely, effectively stimulate neurons
Biomedical engineers and physicians at Vanderbilt University have brought the day when artificial limbs will be controlled directly by the brain considerably closer by discovering a method that uses laser light, rather than electricity, to stimulate and control nerve cells.
The researchers have discovered that low-intensity infrared laser light can spark specific nerves to life, exciting a leg o
Microbial processes ultimately determine whether arsenic builds to dangerous levels in groundwater, say researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Remediation may be as simple as stimulating certain microbes to grow.
Arsenic contamination is a serious threat to human health. In the Ganges Delta of Bangladesh, for example, chronic exposure to arsenic has been linked to serious medical conditions, including hypertension, cardiovascular disease and a variety
The intelligence and cognitive capabilities of dolphins and their aquatic cousins have long fascinated the public and the scientific community, but the question of how and why they have such large brains has mostly gone unanswered. In the first-ever comprehensive analysis of its kind, a new Emory University study maps how brain size changed in dolphins and their relatives the past 47 million years, and helps to provide some answers to how the species evolved in relation to humans.
Region once slated for logging supports tool-making chimps
Scientists have discovered that a remote rainforest in Central Africa, saved from logging by a collaboration among the New York-based Wildlife Conservation Society, a timber company and the Republic of Congo, is home to a population of innovative, tool-making chimpanzees that “fish” for termite dinners. According to a study in the November issue of the journal The American Naturalist, chimps living in the 100-square-mile
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