Nano Origami
Know when to fold ‘em is the basic tenet of Dr. George Barbstathis’s principle of nano-origami. The MIT engineer is developing basic principles that allows engineers to fold nanomaterials into simple 3-D structures.
Instead of paper cranes or frogs that most people associate with origami,...
Hawaii Fights Alien Algae
On the Island of Oahu, the Nature Conservancy has teamed up with the state of Hawaii and the University of Hawaii to create a novel means of algae removal. They call their creation the “Supersucker”.
Posted by Michael Bradbury in Anthropology, Biology, Health and Medicine, Physics and Chemistry, SciClips on 02 23rd, 2009 | No Comments
Forensic Science Under the Microscope
A new National Academy of Sciences report has found that many of the clever ways crime scene investigators analyze evidence and find suspects is itself suspect and not based on a lot of science.
But forensic evidence is one of the most widely used practices in the criminal justice system. And, to call...
Geothermal Energy Heats Renewable Options
Poland’s geothermal energy is a seen as a viable alternative to fossil fuels but environmentalists say high costs and bureaucracy could be an obstacle. Parts of the mountain resort Zakopane in southern Poland are heated using geothermal energy, which is being promoted as a cheap and sustainable...
Global Warming Speeds Up
Watch the video Eye To Eye: Vanishing Ice Caps (CBS News).
Using the Arctic as an early warning system, scientists are claiming the amount of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide is higher than predicted. Daniel Sieberg from CBS News reports.
Satellites Collide in Space — Fallout Uncertain
Courtesy of the Johnson Space Center, NASA Orbital Debris Program Office
Two satellites collided in space last week in the first-ever disaster between to intact space objects.
A defunct Russian satellite that was slowly falling out of orbit smashed into a working U.S. communications satellite, creating...
A Matter of Taste
Are you a taster, a non-taster or a super-taster? If you are a taster you probably think broccoli, spinach and brussels sprouts taste bitter.
New research shows how duplicate copies of the bitter taste gene is important to uncovering secrets of the human genome.
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Satellites Collide in Space
Experts say the collision between U.S. and Russian communication satellites earlier this week has created speeding clouds of debris that threaten other unmanned spacecraft in nearby orbits.
Posted by Michael Bradbury in Consumer Safety, Diseases, Health and Medicine, SciClips, The Brain on 02 11th, 2009 | No Comments
Vaccine-Austism Research Discredited
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Concern over the link of vaccines and diseases like autism and even multiple sclerosis have created a confusing medical climate. Some parents are torn between vaccinating their children against things like measles, mumps and rubella or risking exposure to those diseases that are...
Lucy Gets a Body Scan
The University of Texas digitally scanned an ancient pre-human fossil known as “Lucy”. She is currently on Exhibit at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle. See her before she heads back to Ethiopia after March 8.
Posted by Michael Bradbury in Adaptation and Extinction, Anthropology, Bioethics, Video on 02 9th, 2009 | No Comments
Darwin Year Begins with a Big Birthday
2009 is Darwin year, the bicentenary of the British naturalist’s birth, and 150th anniversary of the publication of his seminal work “The Origin of Species.” An exhibition has opened in London’s Museum of Natural History.
The major milestone was to have begun the Year of Evolution...
Mysteries of Math
Dr. Mario Livio, an astrophysicist at the Hubble Space Telescope Science Institute, loves numbers and sees them everywhere, in nature and in the cosmos.
But where does math, the complex language of numbers come from? Has it always been there for us to find or is mathematics just another human creation?...
Google Earth Maps Oceans and Mars
Google Earth 5.0 lets users explore oceans, view Mars images and watch the Earth’s surface change over time. It was unveiled Monday at the California Academy of Sciences, where former Vice President Al Gore was among the speakers.
Nanobama
President Barack Obama’s image is shrunk to a size smaller than a grain of salt using nanotechnology. These 3D images of Obama measure less than half a millimeter across and are constructed with millions of carbon nanotubes. Each image, based on the iconic image by Shepard Fairey, measures only...
