SciTech Daily

March 8, 2012

Searching for “Bubbles” in the Milky Way

While looking over data from the Spitzer Galactic Legacy Infrared Mid-Plane Survey Extraordinaire (GLIMPSE) and Multiband Imaging Photometer for Spitzer Galactic (MIPSGAL) surveys, volunteers have discovered more than 5,000 “bubbles” in the disk of our Milky Way galaxy. A team of volunteers has pored over observations from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and discovered more than [...]

March 8, 2012

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Nuclear Clock Accurate to 19 Decimal Places

A newly proposed nuclear clock would be nearly 100 times more accurate than the best atomic clocks we have now, would be accurate to 19 decimal places and would provide an unmatched tool for applied physics research. A proposed new time-keeping system tied to the orbiting of a neutron around an atomic nucleus could have [...]

March 8, 2012

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First Real-Time Image of Two Atoms Vibrating in a Molecule

first-ever images of atoms moving in a molecule

Using laser induced electron diffraction, a team of physicists recorded the first real-time image of two atoms vibrating in a molecule. While using common atmospheric gases such as nitrogen and oxygen, the researchers hit the molecule with laser light pulses of 50 femtoseconds, knocking a single electron out of the outer shell of the molecule [...]

March 7, 2012

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Teaming Up to Slash Solar Cell Cost

New Approach to Slash Cost of Solar Cells

Solar start-up company Ampuse has teamed up with NREL and ORNL to reduce the cost of solar cells through the use of a new manufacturing process, a chemical vapor deposition process to grow the silicon on inexpensive foil. By doing away with silicon wafers, the Ampuse model will have the potential to produce a 15%-efficient [...]

March 7, 2012

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Examining the Mechanism Behind Melanoma Drug Resistance

Zelboraf, which targets the mutated BRAF gene, is used to treat melanoma, but it isn’t always successful due to melanoma’s ability to sometimes get around the inhibitor. Now, scientists have a better idea of the mechanism behind the melanoma resistance. By examining the exome, researchers found that the mutated BRAF gene driving the cancer becomes [...]

March 7, 2012

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First Spectroscopic Measurements of Antihydrogen

spectroscopic measurement of antihydrogen

A new study published today shows the first measurements of the antihydrogen spectrum. The ALPHA collaboration at CERN has been researching antimatter and has routinely trapped antihydrogen atoms for long periods of time. The hope is that this new finding will lead to precision comparisons between atoms of ordinary matter and atoms of antimatter. Geneva, [...]

March 7, 2012

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Hearing Loss Rapidly Changes Motor Areas that Control Song

It appears that deafness penetrates much more rapidly and deeply into the brain than previously thought. While studying songbirds, neurologists discovered that when their hearing was lost, their songs fell apart much like human vocalization does, making them an ideal subject to study how hearing loss may affect the parts of the brain that control [...]

March 7, 2012

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GRAIL Spacecraft Officially Begins Collecting Lunar Data

GRAIL Spacecraft Begin Collecting Lunar Data

The GRAIL spacecraft has officially begun its science phase and will map the gravity field of the moon three times over the next 84 days, allowing scientist to better understand how Earth and other rocky planets in the solar system formed and evolved. PASADENA, California — NASA’s Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) spacecraft orbiting [...]

March 7, 2012

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Cretaceous Period Pterosaur Discovered in Northeast China

Paleontologists have discovered a new wildly snaggle-toothed skull in northeast China that belonged to previously unknown flying reptile. It was named Guidraco venator, which is Chinese and Latin for “ghost dragon hunter” by the team. The carnivorous pterosaur had a wingspan of 13 to 16 feet, a jaw filled with pointy teeth, and a round [...]

March 7, 2012

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Iceman Ötzi’s DNA Reveals Health Risks and Relations

Ötzi’s DNA has finally been sequenced. An international team published the almost complete DNA of the Iceman Ötzi from the Tyrolean Alps in the journal Nature Communications. The Iceman’s 5,300-year-old body was discovered in 1991 by hikers near the Italian-Austrian border in the Alps. It was well preserved and has become one of the most [...]

March 7, 2012

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Topological Insulators Show Promise as Flexible, Transparent Electrode

array of microcircuits made of a 10-nanometer-thick film of bismuth sulfide

Topological insulators, such as sheets of bismuth selenide, are ultra-thin sheets of material that are transparent, flexible and highly conductive. Scientists at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory are studying bismuth selenide and other topological insulators for future applications like electrodes for solar cells, sensors and optical communications devices. An international team of scientists with roots [...]

March 7, 2012

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Endocannabinoids Could Reduce or Eliminate Obesity

New research published today in the journal Cell Metabolism indicates that endocannabinoids might enable organisms to stay thin without the need for exercise or diets. Endocannabinoids regulate how quickly the human body burns fat. Previous research has shown that endocannabinoids play an important role in regulating energy metabolism. The new study shows that mice stayed [...]