Caltech astronomers have taken unprecedented 3D images of the intergalactic medium (IGM) — the diffuse gas that connects galaxies throughout the universe, proving that the speculated “dim matter” of the universe exists.
Theoreticians have predicted since the 1980s that primordial gas from the Big Bang is not spread uniformly throughout space, but is instead distributed in channels that span galaxies and flow between them. This “cosmic web” —… read more
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried have found an explanation for how a synapse stays stable for a long time despite the fact that its proteins must be renewed regularly.
The researchers studied the growth of synapses in tissue culture dishes following exposure to a learning stimulus. To do this, they activated individual synapses using the neurotransmitter glutamate, which plays an important role… read more
Scientists at Disney Research, Pittsburgh have developed methods to use a 3D printer to produce electrostatic loudspeakers that can take the shape of anything, from a rubber ducky to an abstract spiral.
The simple speakers require little assembly, but even those few manual steps might be eliminated in the future, said co-developer Yoshio Ishiguro, a Disney Research, Pittsburgh post-doctoral associate. “In five to 10 years, a 3D… read more
A new type of 3D printer developed by Carnegie Mellon University and Disney Research Pittsburgh can turn raw wool and wool blend yarns into fabric objects that people might enjoy touching.
The device, which looks like a cross between a 3D printer and a sewing machine, produces 3D objects made of loose felt, such as clothing, hat, and Teddy bears. It also might be used… read more
Monash University Department of Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering (ECSE) engineers have modeled the world’s first “spaser” (surface plasmon amplification by stimulated emission of radiation) to be made completely out of carbon.
Spasers are analogous to lasers, but generate surface plasmons (coherent electron oscillations) instead of photons.
PhD student and lead researcher Chanaka Rupasinghe said the modeled spaser design… read more
A team of researchers led by Robert Quimby at the Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (Kavli IPMU) has announced the discovery of a galaxy that magnified a supernova thirtyfold via gravitational lensing. This is the first example of strong gravitational lensing of a supernova and confirms the team’s previous explanation for the unusual properties of this supernova.
The team has also shown… read more
Researchers at Beckman Institute have used a novel technique to determine how the brain processes external stimuli that reach (or don’t reach) our awareness.
“When we have different things competing for our attention, we can only be aware of so much of what we see,” said Kyle Mathewson, Beckman Institute Postdoctoral Fellow.
“For example, when you’re driving, you might … see something brief or faint while… read more
Graphene may lead to exciting new applications in the diagnosis and treatment of neurological diseases, according to a report in the May issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The paper can also serve as a general introduction to the properties of graphene and its future uses.
Tobias A. Mattei, MD, of Invision Health/Brain & Spine Center, Buffalo, New York and Azeem A.… read more
Researchers at UNSW Australia have used electrical pulses from a cochlear implant to deliver gene therapy in animals, successfully regrowing auditory nerves.
The research also heralds a possible new way of treating other neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s disease, and psychiatric conditions such as depression through this novel way of delivering gene therapy, the researchers say.
The research was published Thursday April 24 in the journal Science… read more
An international team led by King’s College London and the San Francisco Veteran Affairs Medical Center (SFVAMC) has developed the first lab-grown epidermis (the outermost skin layer) with a functional permeability barrier akin to real skin.
The new epidermis, grown from human pluripotent stem cells, offers a cost-effective alternative lab model for testing drugs and cosmetics, and could also help to develop new therapies for rare and… read more
Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists have found a way to silence (turn off) individual neurons, using optogenetics, which previously could only turn on neurons.
Optogenetics is a method used by neuroscientists to study how specific neurons work. They shine LED or laser light on genetically modified neurons (light-activated) proteins (such as channelrhodopsin) that function as ion channels, which then turn on the… read more
Scientists at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have built the first DNA nanodevices that survive the body’s immune defenses.
The results pave the way for smart DNA nanorobots that could use logic to diagnose cancer earlier and more accurately than doctors can today, target drugs to tumors, or even manufacture drugs on the spot to cripple cancer, the researchers report in the April 22 online… read more
IBM scientists have invented a tiny “chisel” with a nano-sized heatable silicon tip that creates patterns and structures on a microscopic scale.
The tip, similar to the kind used in atomic force microscopes, is attached to a bendable cantilever that scans the surface of the substrate material with the accuracy of one nanometer.
Unlike conventional 3D printers, by applying heat and force, the nanosized tip can… read more
Harvard neuroscientists have made a discovery about myelin that turns 160 years of neuroanatomy on its head.
Myelin, the electrical insulating material in the body long known to be essential for the fast transmission of impulses along the axons of nerve cells, is not as ubiquitous as thought, according to new work led by Professor Paola Arlotta of the Harvard Stem… read more
Scientists at the Technische Universität München (TUM) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) have developed a new optical microscopy technique to unravel the role of “oxidative stress” in healthy as well as injured nervous systems. The work is reported in the latest issue of Nature Medicine.
Reactive oxygen species are important intracellular signaling molecules, but their mode of action is complex. In low concentrations they regulate key aspects… read more