ScienceDaily: Top Technology News


What a Martian meteorite can teach us about Earth's origins

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 04:05 PM PDT

What do Mars and Iceland have in common? These days, not so much. But more than 4.5 billion years ago, it's possible the Red Planet had a crust comparable to Iceland today. This discovery, hidden in the oldest martian fragments found on Earth, could provide information about our planet that was lost over billions of years of geological movement and could help explain why the Earth developed into a planet that sustains a broad diversity of life and Mars did not.

Gender bias in search algorithms has effect on users, new study finds

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 04:05 PM PDT

Gender-neutral internet searches yield results that nonetheless produce male-dominated output, finds a new study by psychologists. Moreover, these search results have an effect on users by promoting gender bias and potentially influencing hiring decisions.

Efficient, stable, and eco-friendly thermoelectric material discovered

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 11:14 AM PDT

A thermoelectric metal oxide film with a thermoelectric figure of merit of ~0.55 at 600°C has been discovered, opening new avenues towards the widespread use of thermoelectric converters.

Space rocket junk could have deadly consequences unless governments act

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 11:13 AM PDT

The re-entry of abandoned stages of rockets left in orbit from space launches have a six to 10 per cent chance of severely injuring or killing a human being in the next decade, according to a new study. Researchers say governments need to take collective action and mandate that rocket stages are guided safely back to Earth after their use, which could increase the cost of a launch, but potentially save lives.

3D printing nickel single crystals using laser additive manufacturing technology

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 11:12 AM PDT

Engineers have succeeded in fabricating a nickel single crystal with only a very few crystalline defects by irradiating nickel powder with a large-radius, flat-top laser beam (i.e., a laser beam whose intensity is uniform across a cross-section of the beam). This technique may be used to fabricate a wide variety of single-crystalline materials, including heat-resistant materials for jet engines and gas turbines.

A proof of odd-parity superconductivity

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 11:12 AM PDT

Superconductivity is a fascinating state of matter in which an electrical current can flow without any resistance. Usually, it can exist in two forms. One is destroyed easily with a magnetic field and has 'even parity', i.e. it has a point symmetric wave function with respect to an inversion point, and one which is stable in magnetic fields applied in certain directions and has 'odd parity', i.e. it has an antisymmetric wave function.

NASA Reveals Webb Telescope's first images of unseen universe

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 08:48 AM PDT

NASA has revealed groundbreaking new views of the cosmos from the James Webb Space Telescope. The images include the deepest infrared view of our universe that has ever been taken.

Web archive with astronomical photographic plates goes online

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

Researchers have digitized historical photographic plates showing negatives of the night sky and published the images online. After a total of 10 years, the project has now been completed successfully.

How do cells react to micro- and nanoplastics?

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

The smaller plastic particles are, the more easily they can be taken up by cells. In addition, the shape, surface and chemical properties play an important role in answering the question of how the particles could affect human tissue, according to new research.

Undead planets: The unusual conditions of the first exoplanet detection

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

The first ever exoplanets were discovered 30 years ago around a rapidly rotating star, called a pulsar. Now, astronomers have revealed that these planets may be incredibly rare.

A machine learning model to predict immunotherapy response in cancer patients

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

Development of a precision medicine technology based on artificial intelligence that predicts immunotherapy response in cancer patients.

Research team accelerates imaging techniques for capturing small molecules' structures

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

A new research effort is accelerating imaging techniques to visualize structures of small molecules clearly -- a process once thought impossible. Their discovery unleashes endless potential in improving everyday life applications -- from plastics to pharmaceuticals.

Researchers remeasure gravitational constant

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:27 AM PDT

Researchers have redetermined the gravitational constant G using a new measurement technique. Although there is still a large degree of uncertainty regarding this value, the new method offers great potential for testing one of the most fundamental laws of nature.

How environmentally responsible is lithium brine mining? It depends on how old the water is

Posted: 12 Jul 2022 07:26 AM PDT

A groundbreaking new study comprehensively accounts for the hydrological impact of lithium mining. Since lithium is the key component of the lithium-ion batteries that are crucial for the transition away from fossil fuels and towards green energy, it is critical to fully understand how to responsibly obtain the precious element.

Future smart homes could be powered with electronics built on stones

Posted: 11 Jul 2022 10:53 AM PDT

What if you could power the smart thermostats, speakers and lights in your home with a kitchen countertop? Stones, such as marble and granite, are natural, eco-friendly materials that many people building or renovating houses already use. Now, in a step toward integrating energy storage with these materials, researchers have fabricated microsupercapacitors onto the surface of stone tiles. The devices are durable and easily scaled up for customizable 3D power supplies.

A boost in performance in fiber-integrated quantum memories

Posted: 11 Jul 2022 08:18 AM PDT

Researchers report the demonstration of entanglement between a fiber-integrated quantum memory and a telecommunications-wavelength photon.

Easy and inexpensive method for linking other molecules to DNA sequences with desired functions

Posted: 11 Jul 2022 06:52 AM PDT

The development of DNA-/RNA-based drugs, like COVID-19 vaccines, is exploding. Current methods are costly, but researchers are finding effective and inexpensive method for producing stable, modified DNA sequences for these modern-type drugs.