Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
Nanostructures Will Raise Thin-Film Solar Cell Efficiency
Thanks to nanostructures that scatter and channel light, electrical engineers are working toward thin-film "single junction" solar cells with the potential for nearly 45 percent sunlight-to-electricity conversion efficiencies. This new...
Student Innovation Could Improve Data Storage, Magnetic Sensors
Paul Morrow, who will graduate from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on May 17, has come a long way from his days as an elementary school student, pulling apart his mother's cassette...
Firearms Microstamping Feasible But Variable, Study Finds
New technology to link cartridge cases to guns by engraving microscopic codes on the firing pin is feasible, but did not work equally well for all guns and ammunition tested...
Recipe For Energy Saving Unravelled In Migratory Birds
Pointed wings, together with carrying less weight per wing area and avoidance of high winds and atmospheric turbulence, save a bird lots of energy during migration. This is shown for...
Undergraduates develop 'dirt-powered' microbial fuel cells to light Africa
A team composed of Harvard students and alumni was among the winners of the World Bank’s Lighting Africa 2008 Development Marketplace competition, held in Accra, Ghana from May 6 to...
Slowing light to speed data: USC Viterbi School wins $4.3M photonics IT contract
Two prize-winning USC specialists hope to break a bottleneck that has long limited communication systems from using light - photons - instead of electronics for data information processing.
Car navigator remotely manages Web-enabled home
(AP) -- Drivers in Japan can check on their pets, turn lights and air conditioning on and off and lock their front doors - all from inside their cars...
Lasers are used to align molecules
ARGONNE, Ill., May 14 (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say difficulties involved with crystallizing molecules for synchrotron X-ray diffraction can be resolved by using lasers.
Student invents silicon chip alternative
TROY, N.Y., May 14 (UPI) -- A doctoral student has invented a transistor that has captured the attention of some of the largest U.S. and Japanese automobile companies.
Scientists seek better football fields
MADISON, Wis., May 14 (UPI) -- A U.S. team of scientists says it has found the most effective seed mixture and planting times for producing faster-growing, more durable...
Britain's Alien Files
At 4 PM on April 19, 1984, a team of air traffic controllers at an airport in the east of England reportedly watched a strange, bright, circular vehicle touch down,...
A Smarter Way to Grow Graphene
Graphene, a sheet of carbon just one atom thick, has many potential uses in the electronics industry, but producing these ideal two-dimensional carbon sheets is very difficult and, as a...
Innovative antennae may signal a 'new wave' in health care provision
Compact, wireless and power efficient body sensors that allow doctors to monitor illnesses and injuries remotely are a step closer thanks to new research.
Study May Explain Variations In Superconducting Temperatures
New experiments at Cornell have verified a theory that variations in the distance between atoms in cuprate superconductors account for differences in the temperature at which the material begins to...
Held together by metal-metal bonds: a large ring containing 36 gold atoms
Chinese researchers have recently made a “golden crown” with a diameter of only a few nanometers. It is a large ring-shaped molecule containing 36 gold atoms. The lords of the...
"Smart" Car Is Safe, Too, Study Says
The micro car, the smallest car for sale in the U.S. market, offers a good level of safety, according to new crash tests conducted by the insurance industry.
EU gives green light to TomTom takeover of Tele Atlas
EU regulators on Wednesday approved Dutch technology group TomTom's takeover of Tele Atlas after an in-depth probe found the deal would not significantly reduce competition in the SatNav sector.
National study examines health risks of coarse particle pollution
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have conducted the largest nationwide study on the acute health effects of coarse particle pollution. Coarse particles are airborne pollutants...
Insulation is NASA's 2007 best invention
MOFFETT FIELD, Calif., May 13 (UPI) -- The U.S. space agency says its 2007 Government Invention of the Year is a heat shield insulation material.
Small bioelectricity plants dirtier than large ones, says study
Small-scale community based bio-power plants produce higher levels of emissions per unit of electrical output than large facilities, according to new research presented at a major sustainable energy conference today.
Re-energising the nuclear sector
A national laboratory will help the UK's nuclear sector play a key role in providing reliable, low carbon electricity.
Failure Analysis of Heat Treated Steel Components Published by ASM
Failure Analysis of Heat Treated Steel Components, a new reference including many examples of heat treatment failures with a special focus on the demands of tool steels and aerospace materials,...
A Sewage-Proof Suit
Paragon Diving System Cost to Develop: $1.2 million Time: 7 years Prototype | | | | | Product Diesel oil and raw sewage slowly trickled into Taber MacCallum’s eyes as...
The Indestructable Bridge
MAN OF FAITH: John Hillman stands under a test bridge made with his composite beams, which get their strength from a concrete arch inside. Photo by Mike Zicko/HC Bridge Company Hillman...
Ten Times the Turbine
Sky Serpant Cost to Develop: $250,000 Time: 9 years Prototype | | | | | Product Today’s largest wind farms are the size of small towns, made up of...
The Zero-Emissions One-Wheeled Motorcycle
RED HOT ROLLER: Gulak had a custom fiberglass body built for the Uno. Photo by John B. Carnett
A Rocket Engine for the Masses
Viper Cost to Develop: $250,000Time: 2 yearsPrototype | | | | | Product If we’re ever going to see a true era of commercial space travel—a...
VIDEO: Lab Probes Universe's Secrets
In a laboratory under the Swiss Alps, a 17-mile (27-kilometer) circular particle accelerator—the world's largest—may help answer the oldest questions known to humans.