Scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a process to turn carbon dioxide into fuel and alcohol

Posted on November 8, 2016 by

In a new twist to waste-to-fuel technology, scientists at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed an electrochemical process that uses tiny spikes of carbon and copper to turn carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, into ethanol. Their finding, which involves nanofabrication and catalysis science, was serendipitous. ORNL’s Yang Song (seated), Dale Hensley (standing left) and Adam Rondinone examine a carbon nanospike sample with a scanning electron microscope. “We disc...

SlicePlanner new hybrid approach to planning, combining an old-fashioned paper and digital calendars.

Posted on November 7, 2016 by

SlicePlanner is a brand new hybrid approach to planning, combining an old-fashioned paper ... our unique system complements your favorite digital calendars. Slice Planner is the first ever paper planner connected to the digital calendars. It is not only an old-fashioned paper planner refreshed by the technology of 2016 but also a specially-designed time management system that presents a new approach to planning your day and time. Powered by computer vision and augmented reality, our unique...

Collaborative Robots

Posted on November 7, 2016 by

A cobot or co-robot (from collaborative robot) is a robot intended to physically interact with humans in a shared workspace.[3] This is in contrast with other robots, designed to operate autonomously or with limited guidance, which is what most industrial robots were up until the decade No area of industrial robotics has attracted more fanfare than human-robot collaboration. You can’t deny the compelling nature of collaborative robots. They have an innate ability to both fascinate and empower...

Cardiocity limited has developed ‘RhythmPad’ that screens hypertension through simple hand placement.

Posted on November 7, 2016 by

Lancaster (UK) based Cardiocity Limited have developed their second variant of the RhythmPad product range to successfully screen from Hypertension through simple hand placement. The RhythmPadGP is a simple USB connected lead1 and 6 lead screening tool. In under 30 seconds the subject’s lead1 and 6 lead ECG may be obtained and analysed giving instant outputs ranging from Sinus Rhythm to Atrial Fibrillation through to Right Bundle Branch Block. The RhythmPadGP makes screening for cardia...

Arterys 4D Blood Flow MRI Imaging System Cleared by FDA

Posted on November 7, 2016 by

Arterys, a pioneer in cloud-based medical imaging software, announced that it has received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Arterys Software. This clearance allows the Arterys product to be used in clinical settings for the quantification of cardiac flow, which includes 4D flow and 2D Phase Contrast workflows, and cardiac function measurements. The product seamlessly integrates into clinical practice to provide comprehensive, simple and quick Cardiac MR i...

Fraunhofer researchers are developing 3D printed bespoke insoles for diabetes patients

Posted on November 6, 2016 by

The importance of foot comfort cannot be overstated, especially for those suffering from conditions such as diabetes. That is, while ordinary discomfort in shoes can be frustrating to anyone, it can actually be dangerous for those with diabetes, as atrophied nerve endings in the foot caused by the disease can dull or eliminate the sensation of pain, which can in turn result in serious foot injuries or wounds. Custom padded insoles have been an important part in curbing this problem, though un...

TransEnterix Completes Successful Pre-Clinical Robotic Surgical Procedures

Posted on November 6, 2016 by

TransEnterix Completes Successful Pre-Clinical Robotic Surgical Procedures; Management Affirms FDA Timeline A medical device company that is pioneering the use of robotics and flexible instruments to improve minimally invasive surgery, today announced the successful completion of four general surgery and urology procedures using its SurgiBot system patient-side robotic surgery system. Management also stated that the preparation of its FDA 510(k) filing is proceeding as planned, and affi...

The onion, a natural alternative to artificial preservatives

Posted on November 6, 2016 by

Protection of food from microbial or chemical deterioration has traditionally been an important concern in the food industry. Chemically synthesised preservatives have been classically used to decrease both microbial spoiling and oxidative deterioration of food. However, in recent years, consumers are demanding partial or complete substitution of chemically synthesised preservatives due to their possible adverse health effects. This fact has lead to an increasing interest in developing more “...

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY -Sunshine matters a lot to mental health.

Posted on November 4, 2016 by

Sunshine matters. A lot. The idea isn't exactly new, but according to a recent BYU study, when it comes to your mental and emotional health, the amount of time between sunrise and sunset is the weather variable that matters most. Your day might be filled with irritatingly hot temperatures, thick air pollution and maybe even pockets of rainclouds, but that won't necessarily get you down. If you're able to soak up enough sun, your level of emotional distress should remain stable. Take away sun ...

Berkeley Lab scientists have identified ‘How our cells keep errors in the transporting genetic information in cells process in check’

Posted on November 4, 2016 by

Mistakes happen. This is the case in the process of transporting genetic information in cells. How our cells keep errors in this process in check is the subject of a new paper by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). They found that RNA-binding proteins are regulated such that gateway proteins can recognize and block aberrant strands of genetic code from exiting the nucleus. Unused messenger RNA (mRNA) strands that cannot exit the ...

Electric current at record speed

Posted on November 4, 2016 by

By using ultrafast laser flashes, Max Planck scientists have generated the fastest electric current that has ever been measured inside a solid material In the field of electronics, the principle 'the smaller, the better' applies. Some building blocks of computers or mobile phones, however, have become nearly as small today as only a few atoms. It is therefore hardly possible to reduce them any further. Light pulses generate Multi-PHz electric current in bulk solids. The emitted extre...

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute have ddiscovered that light transmitted from the shoot to the roots activates photoreceptors in the roots and triggers light-dependent growth responses in plants

Posted on November 4, 2016 by

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany, and Seoul National University, South Korea, were able to show for the first time that roots react directly to light which is transmitted from the shoot to the underground parts of Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Roots can thus effectively adapt plant growth to the light conditions in the environment. (Science Signaling, November 2016, DOI: 10.1126/scisignal.aaf6530). Light is not only a source of energ...

GEORGETOWN RESEARCHERS STUDY REAL TIME CANCER INVASION

Posted on November 3, 2016 by

A research team at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center has described the steps, in both written and video format, that allow cancer investigators to track, in real time, cancer cell invasion and metastasis in transparent zebrafish embryos. Using these fish models, researchers can find answers to cancer questions in one to three days instead of months for the typical mouse model. Because of this rapidity and the ability to image cancer movement in blood, investigators say the use o...

University of California San Diego Engineers Have Developed New Magnetic Ink to Print Self-Healing Devices That Heal in Record Time

Posted on November 3, 2016 by

A team of engineers at the University of California San Diego has developed a magnetic ink that can be used to make self-healing batteries, electrochemical sensors and wearable, textile-based electrical circuits. The key ingredient for the ink is microparticles oriented in a certain configuration by a magnetic field. Because of the way they’re oriented, particles on both sides of a tear are magnetically attracted to one another, causing a device printed with the ink to heal itself. The device...

MIT researchers and their colleagues are designing an imaging system that can read closed books.

Posted on November 3, 2016 by

New computational imaging method identifies letters printed on first nine pages of a stack of paper. MIT researchers and their colleagues are designing an imaging system that can read closed books. In the latest issue of Nature Communications, the researchers describe a prototype of the system, which they tested on a stack of papers, each with one letter printed on it. The system was able to correctly identify the letters on the top nine sheets. “The Metropolitan Museum in New York show...

MIT research scientists set traps for atoms with single-particle precision

Posted on November 3, 2016 by

Atoms, photons, and other quantum particles are often capricious and finicky by nature; very rarely at a standstill, they often collide with others of their kind. But if such particles can be individually corralled and controlled in large numbers, they may be harnessed as quantum bits, or qubits — tiny units of information whose state or orientation can be used to carry out calculations at rates significantly faster than today’s semiconductor-based computer chips. In recent years, scientists ...

Rockefeller Scientists prove how genetics change behavior by studying worms’ foraging strategies

Posted on November 2, 2016November 2, 2016 by

Organisms pay attention to what other members of their species are doing," says Cori Bargmann, a neuroscientist at Rockefeller University. "It's a very robust phenomenon that you see from humans on Twitter to bacteria, and everything in between." That's why Bargmann, Torsten N. Wiesel Professor and head of Rockefeller University's Lulu and Anthony Wang Laboratory of Neural Circuits and Behavior, and her coworkers set out to understand how animals are incorporating social information into thei...

Kent University research suggests, transcranial direct current stimulation improves isometric time to exhaustion of the knee extensors

Posted on November 2, 2016 by

Research led by the University shows that stimulation of the brain impacts on endurance exercise performance by decreasing perception of effort. Researchers led by Dr Lex Mauger from Kent’s School of Sport and Exercise Sciences found that tDCS delayed exhaustion of the leg muscles by an average of 15% during an exercise task, and that this was likely caused by the participants feeling less effort during the exercise. However, tDCS elicited no significant effect on the neuromuscular response t...

Iron-munching microbe discovered

Posted on November 1, 2016 by

Newly discovered archaebacteria converts methane into carbon dioxide with the help of iron A microbe that ‘eats’ both methane and iron: microbiologists have long suspected its existence, but were not able to find it - until now. Researchers at Radboud University and the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology in Bremen discovered a microorganism that couples the reduction of iron to methane oxidation, and could thus be relevant in controlling greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. ...

Northwestern’s Java gene study suggests, not everyone responds to coffee in the same way

Posted on November 1, 2016 by

Genetic variants might also impact nicotine and other drug metabolism Depending on a person’s genetic make-up, he or she might be able to guzzle coffee right before bed or feel wired after just one cup, based on continuing research at Northwestern Medicine. Studying how genes impact coffee consumption habits is nothing new. In previous work from Marilyn Cornelis, assistant professor in the department of Preventive Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, she identif...

Nanofiber Coating Prevents Infections in Artificial Joints

Posted on November 1, 2016 by

In a proof-of-concept study with mice, scientists at The Johns Hopkins University show that a novel coating they made with antibiotic-releasing nanofibers has the potential to better prevent at least some serious bacterial infections related to total joint replacement surgery. A report on the study, published online the week of Oct. 24 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was conducted on the rodents’ knee joints, but, the researchers say, the technology would have “broad appli...

eora 3D brings you powerful, high precision 3D scanning, all on your smartphone.

Posted on October 31, 2016 by

World's First 3D Scanner Powered by a Smartphone. As they worked to verify some specifications on a parabolic dish solar energy project, the team at Eora 3D began researching what it would cost them to purchase their own 3D scanner. They were stunned when they checked out the price for the type of device they needed, so they decided to confront the problem head on and build their own. They say the discovery that the cheapest 3D Scanner which would meet their needs was priced ...

‘Bluesound’ smart wireless multi-room speakers for studio-quality streaming

Posted on October 31, 2016 by

Bluesound is the ultimate choice in hi-res multi-room streaming players. Made by audiophiles for audiophiles, Bluesound’s award-winning line of wireless speakers and digital music players is the first to fully support high-resolution audio. Listen to your favorite tracks, in every room of your home, as close to life-like performance as possible. The Bluesound ecosystem uses your home wireless network to stream music and communicate with other BluOS-enabled players on your network. The ecosyst...

New Tools for Preventing Hospital-Acquired Infections

Posted on October 31, 2016 by

As the focus on hospital-acquired infections intensifies, some medical device manufacturers are considering deep UV light emitting diodes for smaller, portable disinfection devices. Here's how the technology can be used in medical device design. Mark Pizzuto According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) one in every 25 hospital patients in the United States will contract a hospital-acquired infection (HAI) during their visit. Often expensive and sometime...

Reducing Stroke Risk – St. Jude Medical’s Amplatzer PFO Occluder for patent foramen ovale (PFO) has received FDA approval.

Posted on October 31, 2016 by

St. Jude Medical's Amplatzer PFO Occluder for patent foramen ovale (PFO) has received FDA approval, the company announced on October 28. The device, made of two nitinol mesh disks with thin polyester fabric, can now be used in the United States to close the PFO—a congenital hole in the tissue between the heart's left and right atria—in patients who have suffered an ischemic stroke, in order to reduce risk of recurrent stroke. Although PFO is relatively common, observed in about a quarter of a...

Northwestern College research suggest circadian clocks in muscle tissue that control the muscle’s metabolic response and energy efficiency depending on the time of day

Posted on October 30, 2016 by

Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered circadian clocks in muscle tissue that control the muscle’s metabolic response and energy efficiency depending on the time of day. Muscles have circadian clocks that control exercise response. The finding in mice sheds light on the time-of-day differences in muscle’s ability to adapt to exercise and use oxygen for energy. Muscle cells are more efficient during an organism’s normal waking hours, the study found. All cells in the body, includin...

NASA’s Modular, Adjustable Test Plane for Any Occasion

Posted on October 30, 2016 by

Born out of a desire for aircraft to be able to take off and land capably at airports with shorter runways to alleviate congestion at the major hubs, the circulation control wing concept has been floated by the aeronautical community as a possible solution for decades. The technology calls for increased amounts of high-pressure air, derived from either the jet engines or separate compressors, to flow over the leading and trailing edges of the wings, creating greater lift. Given extra lift, an ai...

Mocoro Robot Cleaning Ball robotic duster

Posted on October 30, 2016 by

Mocoro Robot Cleaning Ball robotic duster with a mind of its own; roaming freely around your home picking up dust and filth, changing direction whenever it hits an obstacle so it doesn't get stuck in tight corners or insist on trying to go upstairs. Just sit back and let it do it's thing – it's got so much personality you'll expect it to hop up on your lap and start purring. To stop this playful ball from wasting battery there's an internal timer that pauses it after 15 minutes until disturb...

Vessi™ Fermentor – the fermentor and dispenser that lets you go from pitching the yeast to pouring your beer in as little as 7 days*.

Posted on October 30, 2016 by

Every home-brewer knows Brew Day is the best part of brewing your own beer. But then comes fermentation and bottling. Which means you’ve got, at best, 4 weeks worth of work ahead of you including bottling. Days spent lifting, sanitizing, siphoning, conditioning, worrying, and waiting. Meanwhile, the process presents risks like contamination, oxidation, and sub-optimal temps that could turn your craft beer into crap beer. That is, until Vessi™ Fermentor. Go from 4 weeks of worry and work, to...

‘Husqvarna’ automatic robotic lawn mower

Posted on October 29, 2016 by

A great looking lawn can be a lot of hard work. With a robotic lawn mower, the grass gets mowed automatically - around the clock without your supervision. Cuttings are small enough that you won't need to rake the clippings, adding fertilization back to the soil. The Husqvarna Automower® is able to maintain ½ acre lawns in any weather, with rough terrain and slopes up to 35%. When it meets an obstacle it stops and redirects itself. It also knows when it needs to be charged. With the convenient...