Latest science news in Physics & Chemistry
NIST team demystifies utility of power factor correction devices
If you've seen an Internet ad for capacitor-type power factor correction devices, you might be led to believe that using one can save you money on your residential electricity bill....
Everlasting quantum wave
Solitary waves that run a long distance without losing their shape or dying out are a special class of waves called solitons. These everlasting waves are exotic enough, but theoreticians...
How to spur energy storage innovations
Imagine flying all the way from coast to coast, completely guilt-free, in an airplane that doesn`t emit a single particle of greenhouse gas or air pollutants. That could happen someday,...
STEM gets greener: Promoting critical thinking using renewable energy technology
Can building model cars really help create the next generation of electric vehicle designers and engineers? Researchers at North Carolina State University think so. Through a recent grant, they will...
Water droplets shape graphene nanostructures
A team of chemists reports the ability to bend and reshape graphene, opening up the possibility of forming new and novel devices in the nanoscale. They use an everyday household...
Caltech scientists film photons with electrons
Techniques recently invented by researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) - which allow the real-time, real-space visualisation of fleeting changes in the structure of nanoscale matter - have...
Behaviour modification could ease concerns about nanoparticles
In an advance that could help ease health and environmental concerns about the emerging nanotechnology industry, scientists are reporting development of technology for changing the behaviour of nanoparticles in municipal...
State of the Art: Getting Fit With 2 Bits Of Help
Two new wearable motion sensors are available to monitor your physical activity and provide feedback.
Exploring energy efficiency in multi-scale computing systems
The University of California, San Diego and nine other universities are members of a new research center charged with finding ways to improve the design of computing systems ranging from...
New Automated Technique with Online Verification Eases Network Analyzer Calibration
Verifying the accuracy of network analyzers -instruments that are used to measure key performance characteristics of electronic networks -was once an awkward process involving multiple steps and pieces of equipment.
MIssing Energy Kicks New Physics Models Off The Board
The signature of large missing energy and jets is arguably one of the most important avenues for the study of potential new physics signatures at today's hadron colliders. The above...
Study expects rising interest in energy saving
(AP) -- Energy-efficient technology for batteries, grids and power storage will be trendy in 2010, according to a study released Wednesday on clean energy technology.
Proposed Spacetime Structure Could Provide Hints for Quantum Gravity Theory
(PhysOrg.com) -- Spacetime, which consists of three dimensions of space and one time dimension, is such a large, abstract concept that scientists have a very difficult time understanding and defining...
Hubble Finds Smallest Kuiper Belt Object Ever Seen
In a paper published in Nature, Hilke Schlichting of the California Institute of Technology is reporting that the telltale signature of a Kuiper Belt Object measuring only one-half mile across...
Record-breaking ultrasensitive spectrometer created
A spectroscope with unrivaled performance, able to identify tiny amounts of trace gases in real time, has now been developed. Scientists designed an instrument based on two femtosecond laser frequency...
NRG brings wind farm online in Texas
PRINCETON, N.J., Dec. 16 (UPI) -- New Jersey company NRG Energy commenced operations at its Langford wind farm in Texas that can meet the energy demands of more than...
An Advance in Superconducting Magnet Technology Opens the Door for More Powerful Colliders
(PhysOrg.com) -- Preparing for as much as a 10-fold increase in the Large Hadron Collider's luminosity within the next decade, U.S. scientists and engineers have demonstrated a powerful magnet based...
Strange physical theory proved after 40 years
When physicist Vitaly Efimov heard his theory had finally been proven, he ran up to the young scientist who had verified it and gave him a high five. ...
Airlines sign MOU on alternative fuels
WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- The trade organization for leading U.S. airlines announced a group of 12 international airlines signed a measure backing the use of alternative aviation fuels.
Multitasking Micro-rings
Analytical Chemistry: Arrays of tiny functionalized silicon rings could streamline detection of disease indicators.
Looking for the heartbeat of cellular networks
Our cells' molecules form an intricate network of interactions. Today's techniques, however, can only be used to measure individual molecular reactions outside the cells. Since molecular concentrations are much higher...
Giant wind turbines pose no health risk: study
Noise and vibration from giant wind turbines may be annoying but pose no risk to human health, an industry-funded study has found.
X-ray scans gain colour mode
Researchers have produced colour X-rays for the first time, yielding more information and allowing several scan types in one pass.
Watching Proteins Direct Crystal Growth One Step at a Time (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at Berkeley Lab's Molecular Foundry imaged the growth of protein-studded mineral surfaces with unprecedented resolution and provided a glimpse into how living systems engineer key structural materials.
NIST Technology Program Announces 20 Research Project Awards
NIST today announced funding for 20 new research projects under its Technology Innovation Program, including projects ranging from unmanned, hovering aircraft for inspecting bridges to a high-speed sorting system for...
Handheld Touch Screen Device May Lead to Mobile Fingerprint ID
A NIST team has prototyped a new handheld touch-screen application, a fingerprint identification system suitable for use by the FBI's Hostage Rescue Team.
World's longest laser -- 270 km long -- created
A 270-kilometer optical fiber has been transformed into the world's longest laser, a feat its inventors believe will lead to a radical new outlook on information transmission and secure communications.
Miracle light: Can lasers solve the energy crisis?
Next year will mark the 50th birthday of the laser, one of the most productive and widely used mega-inventions of the last century. Scientists hope that 2010 also will see...