Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
Rust detector created for bridges
DUISBURG, Germany, April 26 (UPI) -- German engineers say they've developed a sensor-transponder that can determine how deeply salt. used to de-ice roads, has penetrated into concrete bridges.
Microfluidic integrated circuit could help enable home diagnostic tests
As a way to simplify lab-on-a-chip devices that could offer quicker, cheaper and more portable medical tests, researchers have created microfluidic integrated circuits.
Researchers successfully lower radiation dose associated with pediatric chest CT scans, study suggests
Adjusting the radiation dose based upon a child's weight can significantly lower the radiation dose associated with pediatric chest computed tomography (CT) scans, according to a new study. CT scanning...
New Speed Trap Gets Help From Above
A satellite-enabled camera system being tested in Britain could keep motorists from circumventing speed traps.
Very soft toilet paper: Becoming scarce?
WASHINGTON, April 22 (UPI) -- An American Chemical Society report says a growing shortage of high-quality paper for recycling is threatening the supply of soft toilet paper.
Diamonds sparkle in laser study
Diamonds grown in the lab are proving to be super efficient laser material, according to research from Macquarie University.
Atlas/Reliance venture grab more shale
PITTSBURGH, April 22 (UPI) -- U.S. gas producer Atlas Energy announced with Indian energy company Reliance Industries Ltd. that it acquired more acreage of U.S. gas shale.
Commercial paradigm brings inventors down to earth
Inventors are often perceived as eccentric, original thinkers inspired by dreams: but many of the 700 inventors at an international fair in Geneva showed skill, pragmatism and good business sense.
Caltech researchers create 'sound bullets'
Taking inspiration from a popular executive toy ('Newton's cradle'), researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have built a device - called a nonlinear acoustic lens - that produces...
Students using solar power to create sustainable solutions for Haiti, Peru
Students at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are harnessing the strength of the sun to improve the situation of an impoverished Haitian school and jumpstart a new dairy industry in rural Peru.
Bizarre matter could find use in quantum computers
There are enticing new findings this week in the worldwide search for materials that support fault-tolerant quantum computing. New results from Rice University and Princeton University indicate that a bizarre...
Critics Challenge Safety of New Reactor Design
A new, safer nuclear reactor design from Westinghouse has a dangerous flaw, according to environmental groups that are fighting two Georgia reactors that propose to use the technology.
Problems plague new air traffic control computers
(AP) -- New computers crucial to modernizing the U.S. air traffic control system have run into serious problems and may not be fully operational by the end of this...
Engineering students hope to break human-powered speed records
(PhysOrg.com) -- Whittney Metcalf, a senior at Missouri University of Science and Technology, is probably the fastest female in collegiate human-powered vehicle racing.
Roundup 4/21: Soured Edition
Boston University has chosen to accept the $1 million, no strings attached, offered by...
Panel Tweaks NIST as Part of COMPETES Physical Science Bill
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) moved a step closer to the...
Consumer lights could get boost from green technology
New technology could let LEDs overcome performance problems and become a stronger contender in the consumer lighting market.
Lasers Versus Dirty Bombs - INL Research Uses Light To Tackle Terrorism Concerns
Lasers can do many things for us, from scanning barcodes at the grocery checkout to searching for life on the surface of Mars. And, according to chemists at Idaho National...
Quantum Cryptography Hits the Fast Lane
Improved system can distribute numerical “keys” for scrambling messages at megabit rates—fast enough to encode video
SEMATECH Technologists Detail Process Advances to Accelerate 3D Manufacturing Readiness
With a focus on providing cost-effective and reliable solutions to speed manufacturing readiness of 3D technology options, experts from SEMATECH's 3D interconnect program based at the College of Nanoscale Science...
Ancestral Eve Crystal Gave Life Its Left-Handedness
A team of chemical engineers have discovered what may be the "ancestral Eve" crystal that billions of years ago gave life on Earth its curious and exclusive preference for so-called...
To DORIS@DESY
Well, who exactly is DORIS? “She” is actually the first Doppel-Ring-Speicher (which translates neatly into English as “Double-Ring Storage”) at DESY, the Deutsches Elektronen Synchrotron in Hamburg. It’s not the...
Harnessing Sunlight to Convert Carbon Dioxide to Liquid Fuel
(PhysOrg.com) -- A startup company, Joule Biotechnologies, Inc., has developed an alternative solution of producing liquid fuel by harnessing sunlight to directly convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into liquid energy (SolarFuel).
Research Restores Credit for an Engineering Feat
New research found documents that prove Alfred L. Rives was the designer and lead builder of the Cabin John Bridge, for 40 years the longest single-span stone bridge in the...
Toxicology: The big test for bisphenol A
After years of wrangling over the chemical's toxicity, researchers are charting a new way forwards. Brendan Borrell investigates how the debate has reshaped environmental-health studies.
Magnetic vortex memory shows memory potential of nanodots
(PhysOrg.com) -- Using magnetic nanodots in the vortex state, researchers have designed a new kind of non-volatile memory that could offer increased speed and density for next-generation non-volatile random access...
Micron Introduces 2-Gigabit Low-Power DDR2 Memory for Smartphones, Smartbooks
Micron Technology today announced that it is now sampling a monolithic 2-gigabit (Gb) low-power DDR2 (LPDDR2) memory device designed to provide mobile products, such as smartphones and smartbooks, with improved...
Spanish and Portuguese scientists join forces to monitor atmospheric aerosols with laser radar
Ten scientific institutions from Spain and Portugal have joined forces to create the SPALINET lidar network, radars with laser technology intended to study the aerosols in the atmosphere. The aim...