ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

Martian global dust storm ended winter early in the south

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 04:50 PM PDT

A dust storm that engulfed Mars in 2018 destroyed a vortex of cold air around the planet's south pole and brought an early spring to the hemisphere. By contrast, the storm caused only minor distortions to the polar vortex in the northern hemisphere and no dramatic seasonal changes.

Meet the Martian meteorite hunters

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 04:50 PM PDT

A team is paving the way for future rovers to search for meteorites on Mars. The scientists are using an extensive meteorite collection to test the spectral instruments destined for the ExoMars rover Rosalind Franklin, and develop tools to identify meteorites on the surface of the red planet.

Anatomy of the red planet: Mars-quakes reveal interior

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 01:30 PM PDT

Researchers have been able to use seismic data to look inside Mars for the first time. They measured the crust, mantle and core and narrowed down their composition.

Unravelling the knotty problem of the Sun's activity

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 01:30 PM PDT

A new approach to analysing the development of magnetic tangles on the Sun has led to a breakthrough in a longstanding debate about how solar energy is injected into the solar atmosphere before being released into space, causing space weather events. The first direct evidence that field lines become knotted before they emerge at the visible surface of the Sun has implications for our ability to predict the behavior of active regions and the nature of the solar interior.

'Wrapping' anodes in 3D carbon nanosheets: The next big thing in li-ion battery technology

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 01:30 PM PDT

The lithium-ion battery is the future of sustainable energy technology, but drastic volume fluctuations in their anodes related to enhanced battery capacity raises a safety concern. Recently, researchers have found that embedding manganese selenide anodes in a 3D carbon nanosheet matrix is an innovative, simple, and low-cost means of reducing drastic volume expansion while improving the energy density of these batteries.

Astrophysicist outlines plans for the gravitational wave observatory on the moon

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 01:29 PM PDT

Not a moonshot: Astronomers explore possibility of lunar observatory to better understand fundamental physics, astronomy and cosmology.

Soft skin patch could provide early warning for strokes, heart attacks

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 11:52 AM PDT

Engineers developed a soft, stretchy ultrasound patch that can be worn on the skin to monitor blood flow through vessels deep inside the body. Such a device can make it easier to detect cardiovascular problems, like blockages in the arteries that could lead to strokes or heart attacks.

Researchers develop tool to drastically speed up the study of enzymes

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 11:20 AM PDT

A new tool that enables thousands of tiny experiments to run simultaneously on a single polymer chip will let scientists study enzymes faster and more comprehensively than ever before.

Smartphone screens effective sensors for soil or water contamination

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 10:13 AM PDT

The touchscreen technology used in billions of smartphones and tablets could also be used as a powerful sensor, without the need for any modifications.

Eco-friendly plastic from cellulose and water

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 10:13 AM PDT

Plastics offer many benefits to society and are widely used in our daily life: they are lightweight, cheap and adaptable. However, the production, processing and disposal of plastics pose a major global threat to the environment and human health. However, researchers have now found a sustainable method - 'hydrosetting', which uses water at normal conditions - to process and reshape a new type of hydroplastic polymer.

Pathogens get comfy in designer goo

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 10:13 AM PDT

New hydrogels mimic intestines when lined with epithelial cells. A study demonstrated hydrogels in various stiffnesses are valuable for learning the dynamics of pathogens that cause diarrhea and other intestinal diseases.

Gaming graphics card allows faster, more precise control of fusion energy experiments

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 10:13 AM PDT

Researchers have developed a method that uses a gaming graphics card to control plasma formation in their prototype fusion reactor.

Planetary shields will buckle under stellar winds from their dying stars

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 09:12 AM PDT

Any life identified on planets orbiting white dwarf stars almost certainly evolved after the star's death, says a new study that reveals the consequences of the intense and furious stellar winds that will batter a planet as its star is dying.

Personalized immunotherapy: Rapid screening of therapeutic combinations

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 09:06 AM PDT

An innovative testing platform that more closely mimics what cancer encounters in the body may allow for more precise, personalized therapies by enabling the rapid study of multiple therapeutic combinations against tumor cells. The platform uses a three-dimensional environment to more closely mirror a tumor microenvironment.

Silicon with a two-dimensional structure

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 09:06 AM PDT

Silicon, a semi-metal, bonds in its natural form with four other elements and its three-dimensional structure takes the form of a tetrahedron. For a long time, it seemed impossible to achieve the synthesis and characterization of a two-dimensional equivalent - geometrically speaking, a square. Now scientists have succeeded in producing a crystalline complex with such a configuration.

Visualizing a city's energy use

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:31 AM PDT

Researchers used the City of Pittsburgh to create a model built upon the design, materials and purpose of commercial buildings to estimate their energy usage and emissions.

Antimatter from laser pincers

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:30 AM PDT

An international physics team has proposed a new concept that may allow selected cosmic extreme processes to be studied in the laboratory in the future. A special setup of two high-intensity laser beams could create conditions similar to those found near neutron stars, for example. An antimatter jet is generated and accelerated very efficiently, as the experts report.

Artificial intelligence models to analyze cancer images take shortcuts that introduce bias

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:30 AM PDT

A new study shows that deep learning models trained on large sets of cancer genetic and tissue histology data can easily identify the institution that submitted the images.

Fully renewable energy feasible for Samoa, study suggests

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:30 AM PDT

The future of Samoa's electricity system could go green, a new study has shown.

Scientists make X-ray vision-like camera to rapidly retrieve 3D images

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:30 AM PDT

Researchers describe a new type of camera technology that, when aimed at an object, can rapidly retrieve 3D images, displaying its chemical content down to the micrometer scale.

Untwisting DNA reveals new force that shapes genomes

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:30 AM PDT

Advances in microscopy reveal how the human genome organises itself in three-dimensional space at much higher resolution than previously possible. A new study finds that transcription generates a force that moves across DNA strands like ripples through water. The discovery may have future implications for the understanding of genetic diseases such as Cornelia de Lange syndrome, developmental disorders linked to chromatin folding, and open new avenues of research in genome fragility and cancer development.

Spotted: An exoplanet with the potential to form moons

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:29 AM PDT

New high-resolution observations clearly show a moon-forming region around exoplanet PDS 70c. The observations have allowed astronomers to determine the ring-shaped region's size and mass for the first time.

Structural biology provides long-sought solution to innate immunity puzzle

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:29 AM PDT

Researchers report the first structural confirmation that endogenous -- or self-made -- molecules can set off innate immunity in mammals via a pair of immune cell proteins called the TLR4-MD-2 receptor complex. The work has wide-ranging implications for finding ways to treat and possibly prevent autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and antiphospholipid syndrome.

Scientists develop tougher, safer bicycle helmets using new plastic material

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:29 AM PDT

Researchers have developed a tougher, safer bicycle helmet using a combination of materials. The new helmet prototype has higher energy absorption, reducing the amount of energy transferred to a cyclist's head in the event of an accident and likely lowering the chances of serious injury.

Infrared held in a pincer

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:29 AM PDT

Many applications, from fiber-optic telecommunications to biomedical imaging processes require substances that emit light in the near-infrared range (NIR). A research team has now developed the first chromium complex that emits light in the coveted, longer wavelength NIR-II range. The team has introduced the underlying concept: a drastic change in the electronic structure of the chromium caused by the specially tailored ligands that envelop it.

Researchers automate brain MRI image labeling, more than 100,000 exams labelled in under 30 minutes

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:28 AM PDT

Researchers have automated brain MRI image labeling, needed to teach machine learning image recognition models, by deriving important labels from radiology reports and accurately assigning them to the corresponding MRI examinations. Now, more than 100,00 MRI examinations can be labeled in less than half an hour.

Scientists harness the naturally abundant CRISPR-Cas system to edit superbugs with the hope of treating infections caused by drug resistant pathogens

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:28 AM PDT

Researchers reported the development of a transferrable and integrative type I CRISPR-based platform that can efficiently edit the diverse clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a superbug capable of infecting various tissues and organs and a major source of nosocomial infections. The technique can accelerate the identification of resistance determinants of multidrug resistant (MDR) pathogens and the development of novel anti-resistance strategies.

New study reveals previously unseen star formation in Milky Way

Posted: 22 Jul 2021 08:28 AM PDT

A new survey of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, combines the capabilities of the Very Large Array and the Effelsberg telescope in Germany to provide astronomers with valuable new insights into how stars much more massive than the Sun are formed.

Team streamlines neural networks to be more adept at computing on encrypted data

Posted: 21 Jul 2021 02:27 PM PDT

Researchers are rethinking basic functions that drive the ability of neural networks to make inferences on encrypted data.

Dynamic heart model mimics hemodynamic loads, advances engineered heart tissue technology

Posted: 21 Jul 2021 02:27 PM PDT

A new model mimics physiologic loads on engineering heart muscle tissues, yielding an unprecedented view of how genetics and mechanical forces contribute to heart muscle function.

Exoskeletons have a problem: They can strain the brain

Posted: 21 Jul 2021 02:26 PM PDT

Exoskeletons - wearable devices used by workers on assembly lines or in warehouses to alleviate stress on their lower backs - may compete with valuable resources in the brain while people work, canceling out the physical benefits of wearing them, a new study suggests.

New quantum research gives insights into how quantum light can be mastered

Posted: 21 Jul 2021 02:26 PM PDT

A team of scientists proposes that modulated quantum metasurfaces can control all properties of photonic qubits, a breakthrough that could impact the fields of quantum information, communications, sensing and imaging, as well as energy and momentum harvesting.

SuperBIT: A low-cost balloon-borne telescope to rival Hubble

Posted: 21 Jul 2021 07:24 AM PDT

Astronomersand engineers are building a new kind of astronomical telescope. SuperBIT flies above 99.5% of the Earth's atmosphere, carried by a helium balloon the size of a football stadium. The telescope will make its operational debut next April and when deployed should obtain high-resolution images rivaling those of the Hubble Space Telescope.