MIT uses nano-origami to build tiny electronic devices

Folding paper into shapes such as a crane or a butterfly is challenging enough for most people. Now imagine trying to fold something that's about a hundred times thinner than...

Solar Energy Performance With Plastic Solar Cells Improved With New Method

Scientists have engineered an approach that is leading to improved performance of plastic solar cells (hybrid organic solar cells).

Argonne scientists pinpoint mechanism to increase magnetic response of ferromagnetic semiconductor

When squeezed, electrons increase their ability to move around. In compounds such as semiconductors and electrical insulators, such squeezing can dramatically change the electrical- and magnetic- properties...

Cross-dressing rubidium may reveal clues for exotic computing

Neutral atoms -- having no net electric charge-- usually don't act very dramatically around a magnetic field. But by "dressing them up" with light, researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute...

Probing and controlling 'molecular rattling' may mean better preservatives

For centuries, people have preserved fruit by mixing it with sugar, making thick jams that last for months without spoiling. Now scientists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology...

Random antenna arrays boost emergency communications

First responders could boost their radio communications quickly at a disaster site by setting out just four extra transmitters in a random arrangement to significantly increase the signal power at...

Sleek new MIT solar car heads to the races

MIT's Solar Electric Vehicle Team, the oldest such student team in the country, has just finished construction of its latest high-tech car and will be unveiling it to the public...

New process converts xylose into ethanol

FRANKFURT, Germany, Feb. 25 (UPI) -- A German scientist says he has discovered an enzyme that "teaches" yeast cells to ferment xylose into ethanol in just one step.

My, What Small Molecules You Have

As nanotechnology continues on its journey toward world domination (or at least linguistic overuse), it's time to stop for dinner. Techniques for creating low fat "nanofoods" sound only mildly less...

The Eyes Have It

Team develops new metamaterial device

An engineered metamaterial proved it can function as a state-of-the-art device in the complex terahertz range of the electromagnetic spectrum, setting a standard of performance for modulating tiny waves of...

Peptides-on-demand: McGill researcher's radical new green chemistry makes the impossible possible

McGill University chemistry professor Chao-Jun (C.J.) Li is known as one of the world leading pioneers in green chemistry, an entirely new approach to the science which eschews the use...

Nanotechnologists gain powerful new materials probe

Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and The Johns Hopkins University have constructed a unique tool for exploring the properties of promising new materials with unprecedented...

Lovely 'snowfakes' mimic nature, advance science

Exquisitely detailed and beautifully symmetrical, the snowflakes that David Griffeath makes are icy jewels of art...

Saw-toothed sapphire helps build polymer arrays

Self assembly produces ultra-dense arrays of nanoscale elements over large areas

NIST and French Lab to Study Weathering of Advanced Composites for Bridges and Piers

NIST has signed an agreement to collaborate with the French National Scientific and Technological Institute to investigate the use of fiber-reinforced polymer composites in high-strength, civil-infrastructure applications such as wind...

ComSci Fellowship Program Accepting Applications for 2009-2010

Senior federal employees who want a broader perspective on the development of the nation's science and technology policy are invited to apply for the Commerce Science and Technology Fellowship (ComSci)...

Imaging Tumors With Degradable Nanoparticles

Fluorescent, porous silicon particles can also carry drugs in vivo

LLNL signs agreement with Siemens to improve wind energy efficiency

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has signed an agreement with Siemens Energy Inc. to provide high-resolution atmospheric modeling capabilities to improve the efficiency of wind farm sites, turbine design and wind...

Scientists develop new plasma thruster

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 24 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they are developing a new type of rocket that that runs on gases that are much less expensive than...

Unusual NASA film opens this week

GREENBELT, Md., Feb. 24 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency has produced a short film called "Return to the Moon" that opens in science museums and elsewhere nationwide...

NanoTube Contest Brings Out the Hollywood Side of Nano Things

(PhysOrg.com) -- How would you describe "nano" to someone who had never heard of it before? In a video contest held by the American Chemical Society (ACS), scientists-turned-filmmakers are explaining...

Magnets might dissuade crocodiles from settling in neighborhoods

Magnets taped to the heads of captured crocodiles could keep them from returning to South Florida neighborhoods where they're not wanted, state wildlife officials said Monday.

Hot to Trot

Tension and integrity are more than just what you might encounter in a day at the office. According to physics-centric artist Kenneth Snelson, the characteristics combine to form tensegrity, a...

Nanoparticle Toxicity Doesn't Get Wacky At The Smallest Sizes

The smallest nano-sized silica particles used in biomedicine and engineering likely won't cause unexpected biological responses due to their size, according to new research. The result should allay fears that...

Opinion: Defects in the target - nRET

Flaws in the design of the proposed new legislation on renewable energy targets put the success of new emission reducing technologies at risk, believes Dr Hugh Saddler.

Wave-Powered Monitor Is Moving Beyond Listening to Whales

The Wave Glider is a sensor-carrying vehicle that moves through the ocean propelled entirely by wave energy

Nanoparticle paper good to go

Researchers have developed ways to manufacture paper or cardboard with nanoparticles – useful to fight radio interference or counterfeiting.