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When fluid dynamics mimic quantum mechanics

MIT researchers offer a radical new perspective on wave-particle duality
July 30, 2013

MIT researchers, in collaboration with physicist Yves Couder at the Université Paris Diderot and his colleagues, report that they have produced the fluidic analogue of a classic quantum experiment, in which electrons are confined to a circular “corral” by a ring of ions.

In the new experiments, reported in the latest issue of the journal Physical Review E (PRE), bouncing drops of fluid mimicked the… read more

Topics: Physics/Cosmology

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Improved nuclear fuel-rod cladding might prevent future Fukushimas

July 29, 2013

A silicon carbide (SiC) sample is removed from a 1500 degree C. furnace, where it demonstrated superior tolerance to oxidation with steam.<br /> IMAGE COURTESY OF MUJID KAZIMI AND YOUHO LEE

A team of researchers at MIT is developing an alternative protection for nuclear fuel, while reducing the risk of hydrogen production by roughly a thousandfold.

Tests of the new cladding material, a ceramic compound called silicon carbide (SiC), are described in a series of papers appearing in the journal Nuclear Technology.

A substitute for traditional zircaloy could greatly reduce the danger of hydrogen explosions.… read more

Topics: Energy | Nanotech/Materials Science

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Silky brain implants may help stop spread of epilepsy

July 29, 2013

Example of Silk Implant Used in the Study. Silk implants designed to release adenosine were placed into rat brains to stop the spread of epilepsy. Image courtesy of Dr. Boison, from Legacy Research Institute and OHSU.

A NIH-funded study suggests a role for adenosine in molecular processes involved in epilepsy.

Silk has walked straight off the runway and into the lab. According to a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, silk implants placed in the brain of laboratory animals and designed to release a specific chemical, adenosine, may help stop the progression of epilepsy.

The research was… read more

Topics: Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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Salk scientist discovers novel mechanism in spinal cord injury

July 29, 2013

p45_spinal_cord_injury

“See-saw” molecule may offer clues to potential therapies in the long-term.

More than 11,000 Americans suffer spinal cord injuries each year, and since over a quarter of those injuries are due to falls, the number is likely to rise as the population ages.

The reason so many of those injuries are permanently disabling is that the human body lacks the capacity to regenerate nerve fibers. The best our… read more

Topics: Biomed/Longevity | Biotech | Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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NIH researchers discover how brain cells change their tune

July 29, 2013

Motile_Axonal_Mitochondria_Contribute_to_the_Variability_of_Presynaptic_Strength

Study may advance fundamental understanding of how brain cells communicate.

Brain cells talk to each other in a variety of tones. Sometimes they speak loudly but other times struggle to be heard.

For many years scientists have asked why and how brain cells change tones so frequently.  National Institutes of Health researchers showed that brief bursts of chemical energy coming from rapidly moving power… read more

Topics: Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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Twitter predicted to become a big TV screen

July 29, 2013

twitter-bird-white-on-blue

Motivational analysis conducted by Columbia Business School and University of Pittsburgh professors forecasts the Twitter medium becoming comparable to television.

New research from scholars at Columbia Business School and the University of Pittsburgh questions the sustainability of Twitter, the social network that has more than 500 million registered users. The research was recently published in the journal Marketing Science.

Columbia Business School Professor… read more

Topics: Entertainment/New Media | Internet/Telecom

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New techniques use lasers, LEDs, and optics to ‘see’ under the skin

Special section in the Journal of Biomedical Optics
July 29, 2013

jbo_june2013

Impressive examples of new non-invasive optical techniques using lasers, light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and spectroscopic methods to probe and render images from beneath the surface of the skin are featured in a newly completed open-access special section in the Journal of Biomedical Optics published by SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics.

The techniques may be used in a wide variety of medical and cosmetic… read more

Topics: Biomed/Longevity | Electronics | Physics/Cosmology

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A faster neuron-activity sensor for charting the brain in real time

July 29, 2013

mouse_neuron_expressing_GCaMP3

Princeton University researchers have created “souped up” versions of the calcium-sensitive proteins that for the past decade or so have given scientists an unparalleled view and understanding of brain-cell communication.

Reported July 18 in the journal Nature Communications, the enhanced proteins developed at Princeton respond more quickly to changes in neuron activity, and can be customized to react to different, faster rates of neuron activity.… read more

Topics: Biotech | Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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Self-organizing ‘giant surfactants’ promise chip-size-reduction breakthrough

July 29, 2013

giant surfactants

University of Akron researchers have developed nanoscale “giant surfactants” (using nanopatterning to combine functioning molecular nanoparticles with polymer surface films and liquid solutions) that could lead to smaller chips, lighter laptops, slimmer televisions, and crisper smartphone visual displays.

Surfactants are compounds that lower the surface tension (or interfacial tension) between two liquids or between a liquid and a solid.

The giant surfactants developed at… read more

Topics: Electronics | Nanotech/Materials Science

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S.F. hacker who made ATMs spit out cash dies

July 29, 2013

barnaby_jack

A prominent hacker who discovered a way to have ATMs spit out cash and was set to deliver a talk about hacking pacemakers and other wireless implantable medical devices has died in San Francisco, authorities and his employer said, San Jose Mercury News reports.

Barnaby Jack died at his home in San Francisco Thursday, although the cause of death is still under investigation, San Francisco Deputy Coroner… read more

Topics: Computers/Infotech/UI | Electronics | Survival/Defense

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Neuroscientists plant false memories in the brain

MIT study also pinpoints where the brain stores memory traces, both false and authentic
July 26, 2013

memory_traces_hippocampus

The phenomenon of false memory has been well-documented: In many court cases, defendants have been found guilty based on testimony from witnesses and victims who were sure of their recollections, but DNA evidence later overturned the conviction.

In a step toward understanding how these faulty memories arise, MIT neuroscientists have shown that they can plant false memories in the brains of mice.

They also… read more

Topics: Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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NASA’s Van Allen probes discover particle accelerator in the heart of Earth’s radiation belts

July 26, 2013

nasa_van_allen_1

Scientists have know that something in space accelerated particles in the Van Allen radiation belts to more than 99 percent the speed of light, but they didn’t know what that something was.

New results from NASA‘s Van Allen Probes now show that the acceleration energy comes from within the belts themselves.

Particles inside the belts are sped up by local kicks of… read more

Topics: Physics/Cosmology | Space

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What if quantum entanglement worked on the macroscopic level?

July 26, 2013

entangled photons

Quantum entanglement works for photons, and even molecuiles, but what about larger objects?

University of Geneva (UNIGE) researchers managed to entangle crystals in 2011, but now they have entangled two optic fibers, populated by 500 photons.

To do this, the team first created an entanglement between two fiber optics on a microscopic level before moving it to the macroscopic level. The entangled state survived… read more

Topics: Physics/Cosmology | Quantum

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Making genome editing more accurate, efficient, safer

Improved technique makes it easier to add or delete genes in living cells, with less risk of off-target DNA damage
July 26, 2013

genome sequence trace - featured

Earlier this year, MIT researchers developed a way to easily and efficiently edit the genomes of living cells. Now, the researchers have discovered key factors that influence the accuracy of the system, an important step toward making it safer for potential use in humans, says Feng Zhang, leader of the research team.

With this technology, scientists can deliver or disrupt multiple genes at… read more

Topics: Biotech

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Neural electrical activity combines memory, environment, and state of mind

Researchers give rats false memories
July 26, 2013

(Credit: iStockphoto)

The information carried by the electrical activity of neurons is a mixture of stored memories, environmental circumstances, and current state of mind, scientists have found in a study of laboratory rats.

The findings, which appear in the open-access journal PLoS Biology, offer new insights into the neurobiological processes that give rise to knowledge and memory recall.

Recent research showed that memories are not unchanging… read more

Topics: Cognitive Science/Neuroscience

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