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Nanosheet catalyst sustainably splits hydrogen from water

May 10, 2012

This magnified image from a transmission electron microscope reveals details of the unexpected nanosheet structure of the nickel-molybdenum-nitride catalyst, seen here as dark, straight lines (credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory)

A new electrocatalyst that generates hydrogen gas from water cleanly and with affordable materials has been developed by scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Traditional methods of producing pure hydrogen face significant challenges by either releasing harmful carbon dioxide into the atmosphere or requiring rare and expensive chemical elements such as platinum.

The novel form of catalytic nickel-molybdenum-nitride surprised scientists with its… read more

Chemical changes in hippocampus are early diagnostic clues for Alzheimer disease

May 10, 2012

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Dr. Pravat K. Mandal and colleagues have developed a non-invasive brain imaging technique that measures specific brain chemical changes in the hippocampus, providing a signature of the early stages of Alzheimer disease.

Key findings in pre-Alzheimer and Alzheimer disease patients in the left hippocampus:

  • Increase in pH to the alkaline range.
  • Changes in four brain chemicals.

This diagnostic technique requires no blood work or radiation, and can… read more

Storing short movie in a cloud of gas may lead to quantum memory

May 10, 2012

Storage and retrieval of two images. (a) The spatially-integrated intensity from the retrieval of the single letter T (blue), and N (red). The yellow curve shows the storage of two images, and the curves are vertically displaced for clarity. (b) The detailed timeline of the retrieved images for 7 frames. (Credit: Quentin Glorieux, Jeremy B. Clark, Alberto M. Marino, Zhifan Zhou, Paul D. Lett)

Researchers have been able to store a single image in a cloud of rubidium atoms for several years. Now they’ve gone a step further by storing two images at the same time, Technology Review Physics arXiv Blog reports.

One of the enabling technologies for a quantum Internet is the ability to store and retrieve quantum information in a reliable and repeatable way.

One way to do… read more

The loneliness scare — isolation isn’t a growing problem

May 11, 2012

Loneliness

Many commentators believe new technologies have made us lonelier, with headlines likes “Sad, Lonely World Discovered in Cyberspace”; “Alone in the Vast Wasteland”; and “The Lonely American Just Got a Bit Lonelier”; and books such as Bowling AloneThe Lonely American, and Alone Together..

On the contrary, people use new media to enhance their existing relationships, suggests Claude S. Fischer,… read more

Several antennas in one allows for more compact, lower-cost mobile communications

May 11, 2012

several_antennas_in_one

EPFL scientists have developed a single antenna that is capable of transmitting the same data as a two-antenna (or more) system, allowing for future lower-cost, more compact, energy-saving mobile devices.

Currently, MIMO (multiple-input, multiple outputs), used in devices such as wireless modems, uses several antennas to transmit and receive signals. It poses problems because it is costly and difficult to integrate into hardware.

In a MIMO… read more

Apple patent describes a more secure face-recognition system

May 11, 2012

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A new Apple patent application suggests what face-recognition technology might enable, Wired Gadget Lab reports.

The patent, “3D Object Recognition,” describes a novel way to generate 3-D models using 2-D images. It would use multiple photos or video to create a robust 3-D representation of a user’s face, which could then be compared, on the fly, to a 3-D representation built in real time from… read more

MIT conference counters myths of manufacturing

May 11, 2012

mit_manufacturing

The U.S. manufacturing sector, which is burdened by negative stereotypes, is showing signs of revival, according to speakers at The Future of Manufacturing in the U.S. conference held on May 8 and 9 at MIT.

The United States added about 50,000 manufacturing jobs this January alone, the largest monthly gain since 1998, and companies such as Ford Motor Co. have moved overseas plants back to the United States.… read more

Psychopathy linked to brain abnormalities

May 11, 2012

anterior temporal cortex_slices

New research provides the strongest evidence to date that psychopathy is linked to specific structural abnormalities in the brain. The study, led by researchers at King’s College London Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) is the first to confirm that psychopathy is a distinct neuro-developmental sub-group of anti-social personality disorder (ASPD).

Most violent crimes are committed by a small group of persistent male offenders with ASPD. Approximately half of male prisoners… read more

Why Google’s self-driving car may save lives — if all cars are computer-driven

May 11, 2012

Google_autonomous_vehicle

The technology behind Google’s self-driving car represents a potential leap forward in auto safety.

More than 30,000 people are killed each year in crashes despite huge advances in auto safety. The overwhelming majority of those crashes are caused by human-driver error.

Computer driven cars could reduce traffic deaths by a very significant degree, said David Champion, head of auto testing at Consumer Reports, but only if all cars are… read more

Privacy perils of social reading

May 11, 2012

billederinternet-watch2

The Internet and social media have opened up new vistas for people to share preferences in films, books and music, providing what Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls “frictionless sharing.” But a world of automatic, always-on disclosure should give us pause,” says Neil M. Richards, JD, privacy law expert and professor of law at Washington University in St. Louis.

“’Frictionless sharing’ isn’t really frictionless – it forces on… read more

Assessing brain function in unconscious, brain-injured patients

May 14, 2012

MRI Head

New functional and imaging-based diagnostic tests that measure communication and signaling between different brain regions may provide valuable information about consciousness in patients unable to communicate.

The new tests, described in an open-access survey article, are functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) combined with electroencephalograpy (EEG), and response to neuronal perturbation, measuring, for example, sensory evoked potentials (ERP).

Disorders of consciousness such as coma… read more

‘Dolphin speaker’ to enhance study of dolphin vocalizations and acoustics

May 14, 2012

dolphin_speaker

To gain new insights into how dolphins communicate, researchers at Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology and  Fusion Inc. created a prototype of an extremely broadband “dolphin speaker” capable of projecting dolphins’ communication sounds, whistles, burst-pulse sounds, as well as detection sounds such as echolocation clicks.

Dolphins rely on the combination of a variety of vocalizations and vastly better acoustic abilities than humans to communicate with each other… read more

Glial cells supply axon nerve fibers with energy, researchers find

May 14, 2012

Electron microscope cross-section image of the nerve fibres (axons) of the optic nerve. Axons are surrounded by special glial cells, the oligodendrocytes, wrapping themselves around the axons in several layers. Between the axons, there are extensions of astrocytes, another type of glial cells

Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine researchers have discovered a possible mechanisms by which glial cells in the brain support axons and keep them alive.

Oligodendrocytes are a group of highly specialized glial cells in the central nervous system. They form the fat-rich myelin sheath that surrounds the nerve fibers as an insulating layer increases the transmission speed of the axons and also reduces ongoing… read more

Improving doctor-patient communication via social media and lower costs

May 14, 2012

Hospital social media accounts (credit: Peter D. DeVries/International Journal of Electronic Finance)

A new social media platform geared towards healthcare might enable patients to share information with other patients and gain knowledge — and enable physicians to share and learn from their peers more readily, says a study in the International Journal of Electronic Finance.

The meshing of these two threads could also make improve doctor-patient communication, and healthcare industry as a whole,by reducing inefficiencies and making healthcare provision and advice more immediate and… read more

A computer interface that takes a load off your mind

May 14, 2012

A user tries the Brainput system (credit: Erin Treacy Solovey)

Postdoctoral MIT researcher Erin Treacy Solovey and her team have designed Brainput, a system using a headband that recognizes when a person’s workload is excessive and automatically modifies a computer interface to make it easier.

The researchers used a lightweight, portable brain monitoring technology called functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), which senses brain activitythrough the skull (no electrodes neeed).

Analysis of the brain scan data was then fed into a… read more

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