Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
Molecules have not changed much in past seven billion years
The mass ratio of protons and electrons is deemed to be a universal constant. And rightly so, as the latest [...]
Better Than SST: Energy-Efficient Computer Memory Uses Voltage Rather Than Current
By using voltage instead of current, researchers say they have made major improvements to magnetoresistive random access memory - MRAM - a faster, higher-capacity class of computer memory. Current, magnetic memory...
Observation of novel behavior in magnetic material suggests fresh approach to studying fundamental quantum phenomena
The name Higgs has been the talk of the town this year, since the elusive 'Higgs boson'—an elementary particle that, among other things, endows other particles with mass—was discovered in...
Novel process is low-cost route to ultrathin platinum films
A research group has developed a relatively simple, fast and effective method of depositing uniform, ultrathin layers of platinum atoms on a surface. Platinum is a widely used industrial catalyst...
Building better structural materials
When materials are stressed, they eventually change shape. Initially these changes are elastic, and reverse when the stress is relieved. When the material's strength is exceeded, the changes become permanent....
Lowering barriers to DNA-based nanomanufacturing
Two major barriers to advancement of DNA nanotechnology beyond the research lab have been knocked down. This emerging technology employs DNA as a programmable building material for nanometer-scale structures. Many...
Bubble study could improve industrial splash control
For the first time, scientists witnessed the details of the full, ultrafast process of liquid droplets evolving into a bubble when they strike a surface. Their research determined that surface...
Fast DNA origami opens way for nanoscale machines
Molecules can now be folded into shapes in minutes, not days.Nature News doi: 10.1038/nature.2012.12038
Joining the quarter-century club
Many a Bostonian has been taunted with accusations of “pahking the cah in Hahvahd Yahd.” But for Glenn Fiore, the phrase recalls nothing so much as a stressful day in 1987, when...
Rensselaer Professor X. George Xu Recognized for Leadership in Nuclear Engineering Research
Radiation expert X. George Xu, head of the Nuclear Engineering Program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been appointed to serve on the Radiation Advisory Committee of the U.S. Environmental Protection...
Speed limits on cargo ships could cut pollution by >50%
The latest episode in the American Chemical Society’s (ACS’) award-winning Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions podcast series reports that putting a speed limit on [...]
Student Engineers at Johns Hopkins Cook Up Devices for Better Cooking
Students in, of all things, a robotics class use engineering skills and advice from a chef to rig up devices to more accurately control cooking temperatures.
12 matter particles suffice in nature
How many matter particles exist in nature? Particle physicists have been dealing with this question for a long time. The 12 matter particles contained in the standard model of particle...
Nuclear power emerges as new Japan campaign issue
The future of nuclear power in Fukushima-scarred Japan has emerged as a major campaign issue for the first time in weekend polls, but experts warn little thought has gone into...
Engineers Hunt for Ways to Cool Computing
A laptop computer can double as an effective portable knee-warmer -- pleasant in a cold office. But a bigger desktop machine needs a fan. A data center as large as...
Thin-skinned catalyst for chemical reactions: Yolk-shell nanocrystal structure offers greater selectivity for heterogeneous catalysis
A team of researchers reports developing a nanocrystal structure capable of controlling catalysis with the pores of a skin-like membrane that can accept or reject molecules based on their size...
Students put mettle to the pedal to build bike-powered charging station
People power has become a new form of alternative energy at Northern Arizona University.
Li-ion king: New Ford test for hybrid vehicle batteries simulates 10 years of use in 10 months' time
Ford is putting the equivalent of 10 years and 150,000 miles of wear and tear on hybrid vehicle batteries using a new lab test that takes less than a year...
New physics in iridium compounds
(Phys.org)—Unraveling the complexities of spin-orbital coupling could someday lead to new high-temperature superconductors and workable quantum computers via an elusive phase of matter called a "quantum spin liquid." Two groups...
New platform developed to measure and exploit optomechanical interactions
(Phys.org)—Researchers from the NIST Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology and Caltech have developed a new design platform for measuring and exploiting strong interactions between light confined in a nanoscale...
Duo create GravityLight: Lamp that runs off of gravity (w/ video)
(Phys.org)—London based designers Martin Riddiford and Jim Reeves have created what they are calling the GravityLight, an LED lamp that runs off of nothing but gravity. The purpose of the...
Biopolymer: Designer interfaces between biological and artificial systems
In their recently published review article in the Science and Technology of Advanced Materials, Yasuhiko Iwasaki at Kansai University and Kazuhiko Ishihara at the University of Tokyo describe how developments...
Should we ban helium balloons?
No Christmas party is complete without them. But helium has vital medical uses – and there's only a limited amount leftIf Christmas feels a bit flat this year, perhaps we should be...
Restoration of Roman tunnels gives a slave's eye view of Caracalla baths
Tourists will see 'maniacal Roman perfection and incredible hydraulic technology' in labyrinth under Rome's Caracalla baths In the middle of a patch of grass amid the ruins of the Caracalla baths in Rome,...
Notes & Queries: Is it OK not to believe in quantum physics?
Notes & Queries is a series where readers answer other readers' questions, on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific concepts. Add your question or answer belowAs I don't understand...
Graphene And Nanowires Team Up In Solar Cells
Nanoelectronics: A simple way to grow nanowire arrays on graphene could give cheap, bendable solar cells
Physics on a plane: Helium crystals grown in zero gravity
Physicists from Japan have taken to the skies to grow crystals in zero gravity. Helium crystals were grown using high pressures, extremely low temperatures (0.6K/-272°C) and by splashing them with...
New nuclear plant design unveiled
The design for the first nuclear power stations to be built in the UK for 25 years will be granted approval by regulators later.