Stratospheric Superbugs Offer New Source of Power

Bacteria normally found 30 kilometres above Earth have been identified as highly efficient generators of electricity. Bacillus stratosphericus a microbe commonly found in high concentrations in the stratosphere is a key component of a new 'super' biofilm that has been engineered by a team of scientists from Newcastle University. Isolating 75 different species of bacteria from the Wear Estuary, Country Durham, UK, the team tested the power-generation of each one using a microbial fuel cell (MFC). By selecting the best species of bacteria, a kind of microbial "pick and mix," they were able to create an artificial biofilm, doubling the electrical output of the MFC from 105 Watts per cubic metre to 200 Watts per cubic metre. While still relatively low, this would be enough power to run an electric light and could provide a much needed power source in parts of the world without electricity. Among the 'super' bugs was B. stratosphericus, a microbe normally found in the atmosphere but brought down to Earth as a result of atmospheric cycling processes and isolated by the team from the bed of the River Wear. Publishing their findings Feb. 21 in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Environmental Science and

The Rich Have More Money but The Poor are Rich in Heart

The world could one day be an economically equal place, if the lower-income population have anything to do with it. In an interesting series of socioeconomic experiments, led by a team of UC Berkeley researchers, the findings are that those on the lower-income levels are more likely to give and be charitable than their higher paid counterparts. In one experiment in particular, led by doctoral student, Paul Piff and his researchers, participants completed a questionnaire reporting their socioeconomic status and a few days later were provided with $10 to share anonymously. The findings concluded the more generous of the income brackets were on the lower-income scale. A recent national survey reiterates the results, revealing lower-income people give more of their hard-earned money to charity than the wealthy. At a time when the richest one percent of Americans own more than the bottom 90 percent combined, Piff and his colleagues' findings are more than a little timely. "Our data suggests that an ironic and self-perpetuating dynamic may in part explain this trend," the study researchers write, to be published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. "Whereas lower-class individuals may give more of their

Computer modelling: Brain in a box

Henry Markram wants €1 billion to model the entire human brain. Sceptics don't think he should get it. It wasn't quite the lynching that Henry Markram had expected. But the barrage of sceptical comments from his fellow neuroscientists — “It's crap,” said one — definitely made the day feel like a tribunal. Officially, the Swiss Academy of Sciences meeting in Bern on 20 January was an overview of large-scale computer modelling in neuroscience. Unofficially, it was neuroscientists' first real chance to get answers about Markram's controversial proposal for the Human Brain Project (HBP) — an effort to build a supercomputer simulation that integrates everything known about the human brain, from the structures of ion channels in neural cell membranes up to mechanisms behind conscious decision-making. Markram, a South-African-born brain electrophysiologist who joined the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) a decade ago, may soon see his ambition fulfilled. The project is one of six finalists vying to win €1 billion (US$1.3 billion) as one of the European Union's two new decade-long Flagship initiatives. “Brain researchers are generating 60,000 papers per year,” said Markram as he explained the concept in Bern. “They're all beautiful, fantastic studies

Humans Naturally Cooperative, Altruistic, Social

The condition of man is a condition of war, wrote 17th-century philosopher Thomas Hobbes. A quick glance through history books and today's news headlines certainly seems to support the longstanding idea that humans by nature are aggressive, selfish and antagonistic. But this view simply doesn't fit with scientific facts, write researchers featured in the new book "Origins of Altruism and Cooperation" (Springer, 2011), edited by Robert W. Sussman, PhD, and C. Robert Cloninger, MD. The book's authors argue that humans are naturally cooperative, altruistic and social, only reverting to violence when stressed, abused, neglected or mentally ill. The book, which now is available, presents evidence supporting this idea from a range of academic perspectives, including anthropology, psychiatry, biology, sociology, religion, medicine and more. "Cooperation isn't just a byproduct of competition, or something done only because both parties receive some benefit from the partnership," says Sussman, professor of physical anthropology in Arts Sciences. "Rather, altruism and cooperation are inherent in primates, including humans." For example, Sussman says, chimpanzees have been observed to adopt unrelated, orphaned infants, despite the significant amount of effort and time required to care for the infants. Sussman and Cloninger write in the book's

Wireless Solar Charger for Electric Buses Keeps Commuters Rolling

Although individual consumers may be reluctant to trade in their gas guzzlers for electric vehicles, public transit departments have already been experimenting with these low-emission alternatives. But the challenges of electric transportation are the same for municipalities: mainly, how do you keep the vehicles fully charged without constant interruptions to the travel schedule?The ATC Solar Curve Bus Stop concept by Studio Mango, featured recently on Design Buzz, could be an answer to this conundrum. Designed for integration with existing bus stops in the Dutch city of Noord-Brabant, the Solar Curve would place inductive charging technology into bus stops that would allow electric buses to recharge their batteries every time they stop to pick up passengers.Approximately 15.5 meters of solar panels installed on top of the structure's roof would collect and convert sunlight into electricity throughout the day. The roof would be curved in such a way that would both protect waiting passengers from the elements and allow the energy to be transferred to the bus wirelessly anytime the vehicle pulls up underneath the overhang.Inductive charging uses an electromagnetic field to transfer energy between two objects. Energy is sent

Research raises new questions about animal empathy

Battery cost dropping below $200 per kWh soon, says Tesla's Elon Musk

During its recent fourth quarter 2011 financial results Q&A conference call, CEO Elon Musk had, of course, lots to say about Tesla Motors and its various products. One statement though, concerning the falling cost of batteries, spoke to the broader electric vehicle (EV) market and bears repeating. The high price of energy storage is, after all, one of the major barriers to lower EV prices and, consequently, faster consumer adoption.We've heard in the past different estimates of battery costs. When the first Chevy Volt battery came off the line it was said to be around $500 or $600 per kWh. For its part, the Nissan Leaf pack was reported to be as low as $375 per kWh. Now, two years down the road what is Tesla saying about the price of its batteries?A participant from JP Morgan asked (in torturous analyst-speak, using "dimension" as a verb) something to the effect of, "Could you speak about how certain you are of a $200-per-kWh battery price and where you see that number going?" Musk began his response by seeming to deny that figure represented the company's current cost but

Motorized roller could mass-produce graphene-based devices

Finding a simple, scalable way to pattern graphene for future electronics applications is one of the biggest challenges facing graphene researchers. While lithography has been widely used to create graphene patterns for electronic devices, its multiple processing steps make it too complex for large-scale use. In a recent study, scientists have found that a motorized, movable roller can deposit a polymer solution onto a graphene surface in periodically striped and cross-striped patterns, which they used to make a transistor. By eliminating several steps involved in lithography, the new technique could lead to a low-cost method for producing graphene patterns for a variety of electronic devices on a large scale. The researchers, from the Korea Electronics Technology Institute and Sungkyunkwan University, both in Gyeonggi-do, Korea; the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology in Ulsan, Korea; and Korea University in Seoul, Korea, have published their study in a recent issue of Nano Letters. “We demonstrated how a self-assembly-mediated process can be applied to fabricate graphene micro-patterns on flexible substrates,” Professor Kwang Suh of Korea University told PhysOrg.com. “This process provides a scalable and compatible methodology for the large-scale and roll-to-roll production of graphene patterns.” The goal of the research

Fantastic Voyage: implantable medical device can propel itself through bloodstream

Electrical engineer Ada Poon has developed a tiny, wirelessly powered, self-propelled medical device capable of controlled motion through the bloodstream. Poon, an assistant professor at the Stanford School of Engineering, is developing a new class of medical devices that can be implanted or injected into the human body and powered wirelessly using radio waves. No batteries to wear out. No cables to provide power. “Applications include everything from diagnostics to minimally invasive surgeries,” she said. They could travel through the bloodstream to deliver drugs, perform analyses, and perhaps even zap blood clots or removing plaque from sclerotic arteries. Poon’s devices consist of a radio transmitter outside the body sending signals to an independent device inside the body that picks up the signal with an antenna of coiled wire. The transmitter and the antenna are magnetically coupled such that any change in current flow in the transmitter induces a voltage in the coiled wire. New tissue model allows for tiny antennas For fifty years, scientists have been working on wireless electromagnetic powering of implantable devices, but they ran up against mathematics. According to the models, high-frequency radio waves dissipate quickly in human tissue, fading exponentially the deeper they go. Low-frequency signals,

A unique on-off switch for hormone production

Weizmann scientists have revealed a new kind of on-off switch in the brain for regulating the production of a main biochemical signal from the brain that stimulates cortisol release in the body. After we sense a threat, our brain center responsible for responding goes into gear, setting off a chain of biochemical reactions leading to the release of cortisol from the adrenal glands. Dr. Gil Levkowitz and his team in the Molecular Cell Biology Department have now revealed a new kind of ON-OFF switch in the brain for regulating the production of a main biochemical signal from the brain that stimulates cortisol release in the body. This finding, which was recently published in Neuron, may be relevant to research into a number of stress-related neurological disorders. This signal is corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH). CRH is manufactured and stored in special neurons in the hypothalamus. Within this small brain region the danger is sensed, the information processed and the orders to go into stress-response mode are sent out. As soon as the CRH-containing neurons have depleted their supply of the hormone, they are already receiving the directive to produce more. The research – on zebrafish – was performed in Levkowitz's

Researchers build first physical 'metatronic' circuit

Figure A. When the plane of the electric field is in line with the nanorods the circuit is wired in parallel. The technological world of the 21st century owes a tremendous amount to advances in electrical engineering, specifically, the ability to finely control the flow of electrical charges using increasingly small and complicated circuits. And while those electrical advances continue to race ahead, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania are pushing circuitry forward in a different way, by replacing electricity with light. “Looking at the success of electronics over the last century, I have always wondered why we should be limited to electric current in making circuits,” said Nader Engheta, professor in the electrical and systems engineering department of Penn’s School of Engineering and Applied Science. “If we moved to shorter wavelengths in the electromagnetic spectrum — like light — we could make things smaller, faster and more efficient.” Different arrangements and combinations of electronic circuits have different functions, ranging from simple light switches to complex supercomputers. These circuits are in turn built of different arrangements of circuit elements, like resistors, inductors and capacitors, which manipulate

Spitzer finds solid buckyballs in space

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected the solid form of buckyballs in space for the first time. To form a solid particle, the buckyballs must stack together, as illustrated in this artist's concept showing the very beginnings of the process. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech Astronomers using data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have, for the first time, discovered buckyballs in a solid form in space. Prior to this discovery, the microscopic carbon spheres had been found only in gas form in the cosmos. Formally named buckministerfullerene, buckyballs are named after their resemblance to the late architect Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes. They are made up of 60 carbon molecules arranged into a hollow sphere, like a soccer ball. Their unusual structure makes them ideal candidates for electrical and chemical applications on Earth, including superconducting materials, medicines, water purification and armor. In the latest discovery, scientists using Spitzer detected tiny specks of matter, or particles, consisting of stacked buckyballs. They found the particles around a pair of stars called "XX Ophiuchi," 6,500 light-years from Earth, and detected enough to fill the equivalent in volume to 10,000 Mount Everests. "These buckyballs

Rare Element, Tellurium, Detected for the First Time in Ancient Stars

Periodic table detail for the element tellurium. (Credit: iStockphoto/David Freund) Nearly 13.7 billion years ago, the universe was made of only hydrogen, helium and traces of lithium byproducts of the Big Bang. Some 300 million years later, the very first stars emerged, creating additional chemical elements throughout the universe. Since then, giant stellar explosions, or supernovas, have given rise to carbon, oxygen, iron and the rest of the 94 naturally occurring elements of the periodic table. Nearly 13.7 billion years ago, the universe was made of only hydrogen, helium and traces of lithium byproducts of the Big Bang. Some 300 million years later, the very first stars emerged, creating additional chemical elements throughout the universe. Since then, giant stellar explosions, or supernovas, have given rise to carbon, oxygen, iron and the rest of the 94 naturally occurring elements of the periodic table. Today, stars and planetary bodies bear traces of these elements, having formed from the gas enriched by these supernovas over time. For the past 50 years, scientists have

Faster than light neutrinos? More like faulty wiring

on September 22 of last year (chemistry-physics-and-material-sciences-research/opera-confirms-earlier-claims-of-faster-than-light-neutrinos.html) that a team of researchers in Italy had clocked neutrinos traveling faster than the speed of light, the physics world has been resounding with the potential implications of such a discovery — that is, if it were true. The speed of light has been a key component of the standard model of physics for over a century, an Einstein-established limit that particles (even tricky neutrinos) weren’t supposed to be able to break, not even a little. Now, according to a breaking news article (http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2012/02/breaking-news-error-undoes-faster.html) by Edwin Cartlidge on AAAS’ ScienceInsider, the neutrinos may be cleared of any speed violations. “According to sources familiar with the experiment, the 60 nanoseconds discrepancy appears to come from a bad connection between a fiber optic cable that connects to the GPS receiver

A Leap Forward for Plastic Solar Cells

A record-breaking polymer solar cell made by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, converts 10.6 percent of the energy in sunlight into electricity. The performance of the cell surpasses the previous record, 8.6 percent, set in July of last year by the same group. Polymer solar cells are flexible, lightweight, and potentially inexpensive, but their performance lags behind that of conventional cells made from inorganic materials such as silicon. The goal of the researchers, led by Yang Yang, professor of materials science and engineering at UCLA, is to make a polymer solar cell that can compete with thin-film silicon cells. Yang's record-breaking cell, enabled by a new photovoltaic polymer developed by a Japanese company, Sumitomo Chemical, is a sign that researchers are getting better at making solar cells from these finicky materials. The new plastic solar cell combines two layers that work with different bands of light—a polymer that works with visible light and one that works with infrared light. "The solar spectrum is very broad, from the near infrared through the infrared to the ultraviolet, and one single solar-cell component can't do it all," says Yang. The best inorganic solar cells are also

Solar and Water-Powered Street Lights Take a Cue from the Mango Leaf

Designer Adam Mikloski (http://www.adammiklosi.hu/index.php?p=146&i=5&n=renderr.jpg) has come up with a beautiful design for solar powered street lights in India. Mimicking the structure of a seedling and the shape of mango leaves, the concept design captures not just sunlight but also rain to power the lamps. The tops of the leaves have solar cells for sunny days. Meanwhile when it rains, the shape of the "leaves" funnels water to a drain into the post, where a water turbine can gather energy from the moving water. The designer writes: [In] India, due to monsoon climate there is a high fall, which can be perfectly utilized...The number of sunny hours after the rainy season is high. Recycling the power of the sun and rain constitutes the basis of my concept. To define the shape, I used leaves and shoots of plants. Leaves are extremely important for drainage. I considered the shape of mango leaves favorable as regards functionality, shape, and cultural history. The top of the leaf is appropriate for installing solar cells and for collecting water, while the stalk can divert and recycle this amount of rain. LEDs are operated by rechargeable batteries. One question is what happens to the water

Italian engineer invents floating solar panels

Rays of the winter sun bounce off gleaming mirrors on the tiny lake of Colignola in Italy, where engineers have built a cost-effective prototype for floating, rotating solar panels. "You are standing on a photovoltaic floating plant which tracks the sun, it's the first platform of its kind in the world!" said Marco Rosa-Clot, a professor at Florence University, proudly showing off his new project. Rosa-Clot and his team say they are revolutionising solar power and that their floating flower-petal-like panels soaking up the Tuscan sun have already attracted a lot of interest from international buyers. Standard solar panels on buildings or in fields have been criticised for taking up valuable agricultural land, being unsightly and losing energy through overheating issues the floating plants would resolve. The Floating Tracking Cooling Concentrator (FTCC) system is designed to exploit unused areas of artificial reservoirs or disused quarries. While the water keeps the panels at low temperatures, reflectors are positioned to maximise solar capture at different times of day, making it more efficient than a traditional installation, Rosa-Clot said. The head of Scintec, a small family business which produces a variety of renewable energy and industrial devices, Rosa-Clot said the pilot

Industrial robot to try its hand at sketching portraits

An industrial robot has been modified to autonomously create pencil sketches of human subjectsPity the poor industrial robot. It spends countless hours toiling away at mindless manual labor, never getting a chance to explore its creative side. Well, next month at the CeBIT digital technology trade show, one such robot will get the opportunity. When visitors to the Fraunhofer display take a seat on a provided stool, one of the company's industrial robots will create a pencil sketch of them, then hold up the finished product for everyone to see.The installation was created by artists from the robotlab group, at the Center for Art and Media, located in the German city of Karlsruhe. They collaborated with scientists from the Fraunhofer Institute for Optronics, System Technologies and Image Exploitation, which is where the robot works. On a typical day there, it will move its light sensor-equipped arm in an arc around a product that's designed to be reflective (such as a child's safety reflector), assessing how well it returns light to a light source.At CeBIT, it will start each portrait session by taking a still image of its

Robotic Dinosaurs On the Way for Next-Gen Paleontology

Researchers at Drexel University are bringing the latest technological advancements in 3-D printing to the study of ancient life. Using scale models of real fossils, for the first time, they will be able to test hypotheses about how dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals moved and lived in their environments."Technology in paleontology hasn't changed in about 150 years," said Drexel paleontologist Dr. Kenneth Lacovara, an associate professor in the College of Arts and Sciences. "We use shovels and pickaxes and burlap and plaster. It hasn't changed until right now."3-D Printing Technology in PaleontologyLacovara has begun creating 3-D scans of giant dinosaur bones and other fossils in his lab. The 3-D scan puts a virtual image in a digital workspace that researchers can manipulate and analyze. To bring these scans to life, Lacovara is also teaming up with mechanical engineer Dr. James Tangorra, an assistant professor in Drexel's College of Engineering, to use 3-D printing technology to create and test scale models of fossil bones.A 3-D printer is a technology for rapid prototyping and manufacturing objects based on a digital design. Common models work by repeatedly extruding extremely

Space Elevator That Soars 60,000 Miles into Space May Become Reality by 2050

Obayashi Corporation, one of the major Japanese construction companies, has a grandiose dream it plans to build a 'space elevator,' by the year 2050, which will transport passengers almost 60,000 miles high into space, Japanese newspaper Yomiuri has reported.A 'Space Elevator,' till now read in science fiction novels, is set to become a realty. As early as 1979, sci-fi writer Arthur C. Clarke mentioned about construction of a space elevator in his novel 'The Fountains of Paradise.' The elevator was supposed to link Earth with a satellite in geostationary orbit. But, it remained a dream because of technology's limitation. The new millienium, however, has brought the dream of 'space elevator' into the realms of reality. At the 2nd Annual International conference, year 2003, on Space Elevator, Dr. Brad Edwards, president and founder of Carbon Designs Inc, showed the blueprint of a proposed space elevator, which has been backed by NASA. But it's not just NASA. Even non-government organizations have been working on developing the technology of space elevator. According to Obayashi, a 30-seaters space elevator will be made of