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Smallpox pill promising

New drug could soon thwart smallpox outbreaks

An anti-smallpox pill could be on the way if a new compound that shows promise in animal tests proves safe and effective in humans. Such a pill could provide the best method for controlling an unforeseen smallpox outbreak, its developers claim.

The need for new ways to treat smallpox has only become an issue in recent years as the threat of a deliberate release of the virus intensifies. Smallpox – a highly contagious and often let

Safe decay detector developed by dentists and textile experts

Tooth decay could soon be detected without resorting to potentially harmful X-rays – by using a novel electrical technique developed by dental researchers at the University of Dundee in an unusual partnership with textile experts at Heriot Watt University.

Laboratory tests show the device, which measures the electrical resistance of teeth, is twice as accurate as current examination techniques and detects decay in its earliest stages when preventive treatment is still possible.

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EMBO gets US$ 2 Million from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to support young scientists

Grant Supports Young Researchers in Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland Heidelberg, Germany – The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) announces that the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has joined the organization in supporting young scientists from Central Europe, namely the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland. The HHMI provides $ 2 Mio for the next four years to the EMBO Young Investigator Programme. Each year six scientists can be supported with Euro 30 000 per year for a durat

Stable silicon layer makes flat-panel display cheaper

In a joint project between the Technology Foundation STW and the energy agency Novem at Utrecht University, researchers have developed new silicon layers which are more stable and cheaper than the present amorphous silicon layers. The electronic properties of the present layers in laptop screens and solar cells deteriorate if the material is under ‘stress’, for example due to sunshine or a voltage.

Flat-panel displays and solar cells have a substrate of glass or plastic, which is coated with

Satellite spies on doomed Antarctic ice shelf

Satellite images have revealed the collapse of Larsen B ice shelf on the Antarctic Peninsula fulfilling predictions made by British Antarctic Survey (BAS) scientists. The collapse of the 3250 km2 ice shelf is the latest drama in a region of Antarctica that has experienced unprecedented warming over the last 50 years.

Earlier this month Ted Scambos of the University of Colorado alerted BAS glaciologists David Vaughan and Chris Doake to images from the NASA MODIS satellite. Meanwhile, in Antar

Selection of the fittest

A new study shows that schools and many education programmes are failing to provide students with a basic understanding of evolution.

It is famously difficult to explain evolutionary principles without resorting to anthropomorphic or figurative language. Evolution ‘selects’ the fittest individuals; species ‘adapt’ to change. Both of these phrases are commonplace when explaining the very complex processes involved in evolution. However, this use of language implies that there is an agency o

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Physics and Astronomy

Who moved my atom?

Researchers at the Technion Faculty of Physics have demonstrated controlled transfer of atoms using coherent tunneling between “optical tweezers”. An experimental setup built at the Technion Faculty of Physics demonstrates…

Fermium studied at GSI/FAIR

Researchers investigate nuclear properties of element 100 with laser light. Where does the periodic table of chemical elements end and which processes lead to the existence of heavy elements? An…

Quantum vortices confirm superfluidity in supersolid

Supersolids are a new form of quantum matter that has only recently been demonstrated. The state of matter can be produced artificially in ultracold, dipolar quantum gases. A team led…

Life Sciences and Chemistry

A milestone for reproductive medicine

Producing viable eggs from undeveloped oocytes through In vitro technology. Researchers successfully produce viable, embryo-forming egg cells from underdeveloped oocytes extracted from ovarian follicles. Mature egg cells, or oocytes, are…

‘Sleepy cannabis’: first study to show cannabinol increases sleep

Non-hallucinogenic marijuana constituent increases sleep in rats. Research by scientists at the University of Sydney has identified a constituent in the cannabis plant that improves sleep. Their report is the…

A New Perspective on Aging at the Cellular Level

Research team at Freie Universität Berlin discovers unexpected differences in aging bacterial cells. Surprising findings on bacterial aging have emerged from a study carried out by a team of researchers…

Materials Sciences

Bringing Quantum Mechanics to Life

New ISTA assistant professor Julian Léonard makes abstract quantum properties visible. From the realm of the abstract to the tangible, the new assistant professor at the Institute of Science and…

Carpet fibers stop concrete cracking

Engineers in Australia have found a way to make stronger and crack-resistant concrete with scrap carpet fibres, rolling out the red carpet for sustainability in the construction sector. The research…

New material to make next generation of electronics faster and more efficient

With the increase of new technology and artificial intelligence, the demand for efficient and powerful semiconductors continues to grow. Researchers at the University of Minnesota have achieved a new material…

Information Technology

Storm in a laser beam

Physicists create “light hurricanes” that could transport huge amounts of data. Much of modern life depends on the coding of information onto means of delivering it. A common method is…

Flexible beam-shaping platform optimizes LPBF processes

A new approach to beam shaping will soon make additive manufacturing more flexible and efficient: Fraunhofer ILT has developed a new platform that can be used to individually optimize laser…

Breakthrough in energy-efficient avalanche-based amorphization

… could revolutionize data storage. The atoms of amorphous solids like glass have no ordered structure; they arrange themselves randomly, like scattered grains of sand on a beach. Normally, making…