The magnetic equivalent of electricity, dubbed "magnetricity", has been demonstrated experimentally for the first time. Just as the flow of electrons produces electrical current, individual north and south magnetic poles have been observed to roam freely, generating magnetic "current".
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Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Scientists to use artificial photosynthesis and nanotubes to generate hydrogen fuel with sunlight
A team of four chemists at the University of Rochester have begun work on a new kind of system to derive usable hydrogen fuel from water using only sunlight.
The project has caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Energy, which has just given the team nearly $1.7 million to pursue the design.
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The project has caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Energy, which has just given the team nearly $1.7 million to pursue the design.
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X-band offers cure for congested spectrum
DOD has to compete for available capacity on commercial satellites with media and telecommunications companies and other high-volume satellite communications customers.
One of those providers is Xtar, a joint venture of Loral Space and Communications and Hisdesat Sevicios Estratégicos. Xtar's commercial X-band service is now available as part of the Defense Information Systems Agency's Defense Information Systems Network Satellite Transmission Services-Global program and through the General Services Administration.
Detecting Light with Graphene
Researchers have explored graphene's extraordinary electronic properties for numerous applications over the past few years, from superfast transistors to extremely dense memory chips. Now, for the first time, IBM researchers are exploiting graphene's unique properties for optoelectronics, using graphene sheets to make photodetectors.
The future of electricity may be found in environmentally-friendly, thermoelectric cells
The Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the National Science Foundation are funding research that may result in a military turbine aircraft that for the first time ever will produce its own electricity from exhaust heat generated from thermo electricity.
Tracking down the human 'odorprint'
Each of the 6.7 billion people on Earth has a signature body odor -- the chemical counterpart to fingerprints -- and scientists are tracking down those odiferous arches, loops, and whorls in the "human odorprint" for purposes ranging from disease diagnosis to crime prevention.
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Cyber criminals find new ways to attack
Cyber criminals are finding new ways to steal information, including infecting legitimate Web sites with Trojans and creating rogue software packages that look legitimate but contain malware, cybersecurity experts warned.
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NASA Announces Commercial RLV Technology Roadmap Project
NASA is partnering with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory to develop a technology roadmap for the commercial reusable launch vehicle, or RLV, industry.
"NASA is committed to stimulating the emerging commercial reusable launch vehicle industry," said Lori Garver, deputy administrator at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "There is a natural evolutionary path from today's emerging commercial suborbital RLV industry to growing and developing the capability to provide low-cost, frequent and reliable access to low Earth orbit.
KDDI fuel cell makes battery recharging a snap
KDDI has recently shown off a new fuel cell battery that can be refilled with methanol, where it will run for up to 320 hours before requiring another refill. This prototype fuel cell is a type of hybrid device which will be coupled to a lithium ion battery that offers enough juice for surges in use.
Air Products designs 24-hour self service hydrogen fuelling station
Air Products will install and operate the first ever 24-hour self service hydrogen fuelling station in Hürth, Germany. The station, based at the Infraserv-Knapsack Chemical Park, will be in regular operation by March 2010, when it will initially supply hydrogen to two buses run by the local council.
NASA Testing Alternative Orion Capsule
The NASA Engineering and Safety Center, set up in the wake of the Columbia accident to provide independent testing, analysis and assessments of the agency's high-risk programs, has been studying the alternative Orion capsule for about three years.
Could Observatory Lasers Damage Satellites?
Although adaptive optics technology is becoming more advanced, powerful lasers that are often used in the technique are at odds with the U.S. Air Force. For every astronomy campaign that requires the use of lasers, an application must be sent days ahead of time to the Laser Clearing House at Vandenberg Air Force base, Calif. In the past, this was just a routine requirement, but more recently restrictions have become very tight, impacting the science that is being carried out.
Barnes & Noble's 'color' e-book reader photos leaked
Ever since word got out that Barnes & Noble was set to announce its own e-book reader next week, the rumors have been flying, with lots of whispers that the gadget might just have a color display. Well, it appears those rumors are valid, with one big caveat: the upcoming eBook (as it appears to be called) apparently has a standard, 800x600 6-inch monochrome e-ink display along with a multitouch 480x144-pixel color LCD that's designed for browsing book covers and perhaps other content, according to Gizmodo.
How Can We Tell If a Country Is Making Nuclear Power or Nuclear Weapons?
Just about everyone insists that Iran’s nuclear program is aimed at building weapons. Iran claims it only wants nuclear power. So how do weapons inspectors get at the truth? They study the country’s supply and treatment of uranium, one of the most abundant nuclear materials on the planet.
The Future of Wi-Fi is Routerless
Routers are the middle-men of our wireless networks; without them, our Wi-Fi gadgets (laptops, hard drives, cameras, printers, whathaveyou) can't talk to each other. But routers, like most intermediaries, don't make anything easier -- not at all. A new Wi-Fi standard is on the horizon that will let our devices talk to each other directly. Ain't that sweet?
The new specification, which the Wi-Fi Alliance hopes will start showing up in devices in mid 2010, is called Wi-Fi Direct. But that's not all, a new Wi-Fi Direct device will be backwards compatible with any previously released Wi-Fi Certified gadget you have.
Boeing Advanced Tactical Laser Strikes Moving Target In Test
Boeing and the U.S. Air Force on Sept. 19 damaged a moving ground vehicle from the air using the Advanced Tactical Laser (ATL) aircraft, completing ATL's first air-to-ground, high-power laser engagement of a mobile target.
Authorization Bill Kills Big U.S. Defense Programs
Weapon programs "are like vampires," Sen. John McCain said. "You can kill one occasionally, but not very often."
This year, however, Congress seems to have driven stakes through the hearts of at least a half dozen weapon programs - although not the C-17, which McCain, R-Ariz., strove mightily to execute.
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This year, however, Congress seems to have driven stakes through the hearts of at least a half dozen weapon programs - although not the C-17, which McCain, R-Ariz., strove mightily to execute.
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Russia To Adopt 1st Strike Nuke Policy
Russia will revise its military doctrine to allow a "preventative" nuclear strike against would-be aggressors, a top Kremlin policy-maker was quoted as saying Oct. 14.
Nikolai Patrushev, the secretary of the powerful security council, said the conditions under which Russia could resort to atomic weapons are being reworked in the main strategy document and will be reviewed by President Dmitry Medvedev by the end of the year.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Superconductor Electricity Pipelines to be Adopted for America's First Renewable Energy Market Hub
American Superconductor Corporation (NASDAQ: AMSC - News), a global energy technologies company, today announced that Superconductor Electricity Pipelines have been chosen for The Tres Amigas Project, the nation’s first renewable energy market hub. Superconductor Electricity Pipelines comprise transmission-level direct current (DC) superconductor power cables powered by AMSC high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire and high-powered voltage-source AC/DC power converters.
Conair Uses Its Own RFID Solutions to Expedite Shipments
The U.S. supplier of personal-grooming and kitchen appliances plans to have all of its factories apply EPC Gen 2 tags to individual products by the end of 2010, and is launching a new RFID-based cargo seal.
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Improved redox flow batteries for electric cars
A new type of redox flow battery presents a huge advantage for electric cars. If the rechargeable batteries are low, the discharged electrolyte fluid can simply be exchanged at the gas station for recharged fluid -- as easy as refilling the petrol tank.
Tiny technology may yield major finds -- and possible perils
Imagine a particle so small it would take a million of them to stretch across the period at the end of this sentence. Imagine such particles could help catch cancer cells floating in your bloodstream before they could metastasize to the liver, bones, brain or other organs. Or replace the insulin-making cells of your pancreas to cure diabetes. Or, conversely, attack the linings of your lungs with the lethality of asbestos.
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Navy Plans Robotic Barnacle Buster
To help save energy on warships, the navy might one day deploy underwater robots that help vessels conserve fuel by scrubbing their hulls clean to make them cut through the water better.
Hand Washing Detectors Could Save Lives
New health care technology could sniff out one of the leading causes of death in the United States. HyGreen hand hygiene sensors, developed at the University of Florida, can detect whether doctors and health care workers have followed hand-washing procedures before making contact with patients.
Textron XM1100 Scorpion Completes Simulated Urban Environment Tests
Textron Defense Systems, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today that its XM1100 Scorpion networked sensor and munitions platform has completed a test series focused on demonstrating the system's capabilities in urban environments.
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Boeing SDB II Successfully Engages Target in Flight Test
The Boeing [NYSE: BA] GBU-40 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) II team successfully concluded a 42-month risk reduction program on Sept. 29 with a flight test in which the weapon impacted its target.
"Our design, development and testing have resulted in a highly capable, robust system that not only meets the needs of today's warfighters, but also has the capacity to adapt to the unknowns of tomorrow's threats and operational conditions," said Debra Rub, Weapons Programs vice president.
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"Our design, development and testing have resulted in a highly capable, robust system that not only meets the needs of today's warfighters, but also has the capacity to adapt to the unknowns of tomorrow's threats and operational conditions," said Debra Rub, Weapons Programs vice president.
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Nissan Scrambles to Create EV Charging Stations
Nissan is planning to roll out thousands of electric vehicles next year and is rushing to establish a network of charging stations where owners can plug in to keep them going.The Japanese automaker is working with Ecotality to bring 11,210 chargers and 4,700 Nissan Leaf electric cars to five states — Arizona, California, Oregon, Washington and Tennessee. Ecotality is getting a big assist from the Department of Energy, which has granted the Arizona company $99.8 million to underwrite The Electric Vehicle Project. Ecotality calls it “the largest deployment of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure in history.”
Digi Launches Industry's First Fleet Management Telematics Device Family Featuring Five Different Wireless Technologies
Digi International (NASDAQ: DGII) today introduced the ConnectPort X5 family of compact, ruggedized telematics devices with optional satellite functionality. The product family is the industry's first family of telematics devices to incorporate cellular, satellite, global positioning system (GPS), Wi-Fi and vehicle area network (VAN) wireless technology in one device.
Ideal for fleet management and asset tracking applications.
Object recognition system
MIT researchers claim to have developed a computer that can recognise objects using a newly developed algorithmic technique.
Their object recognition system could allow computers in the future to automatically search through hours of video footage for a particular two-minute scene.
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Their object recognition system could allow computers in the future to automatically search through hours of video footage for a particular two-minute scene.
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5 Companies Making Fuel From Algae Now
Ubiquitous and easy to grow, algae has long been a promising biomass-to-fuel candidate in the eyes of researchers. Now algae is a burgeoning sector in biofuels with several high-profile start-ups, including Craig Venter’s Synthetic Genomics, and the interest of big-time investors like Bill Gates and ExxonMobil. Of course, hurdles still exist to make a competitive fuel. Algal biofuels still cost too much to produce—over $8 a gallon (pdf), according to the DOE. Furthermore, most existing strains do not yield oil in the quantities needed to quickly scale up to commercial production of biofuels. Companies also need to worry about contaminating local ecosystems and the amount of water needed to grow cultures in large batches.
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