Sci-Tech news

• Governments urged to support scrambling digital data

  11-01-2016 23:35
  
  An open letter posted on Monday by Internet freedom advocates called on governments to back tough encryption of digital data to keep people's information private.
  
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• Apple's Night Shift Feature Could Help iPhone Users Sleep

  11-01-2016 23:24 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Apple is testing a new feature that could help users catch some Zs. On Monday, the company released the beta version of iOS 9.3, which will include a
  
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• NSF's iPlant Collaborative rebrands to CyVerse

  11-01-2016 23:07
  
  The National Science Foundation's premier data management platform for the life sciences has rebranded, shedding the project's original label of iPlant Collaborative and donning the new name CyVerse. The rebrand emphasizes the project's capacity to provide data management and computation services beyond plant sciences, for collaborations across scientific disciplines.
  
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• Conflict among honey bee genes supports theory of altruism

  11-01-2016 23:06
  
  Using modern genetic approaches, a team of researchers has provided strong support for the long-standing, but hotly debated, evolutionary theory of kin selection, which suggests that altruistic behavior occurs as a way to pass genes to the next generation.
  
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• Zuckerberg Baby's Shot Photo Riles Anti-Vaxxers

  11-01-2016 22:42 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Facebook's founder and CEO has dropped himself into the riotous social media debate over childhood vaccines.
  
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• Green campaigners back Italian giant's tilt to renewable energy

  11-01-2016 22:10
  
  Italian energy giant Enel was Monday putting the finishing touches to a corporate restructure designed to put renewables at the core of the company's strategy in a move hailed by erstwhile critic Greenpeace.
  
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• Why 'El Chapo' Communicated Using BlackBerry Messenger

  11-01-2016 22:08 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Your accountant uncle who still wears his phone in a holster on his hip loves BlackBerry Messenger. And so, apparently, does one of the world's most n
  
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• Watch: CES 2016: The Biggest Takeaways on the Future of Tech

  11-01-2016 21:59
  
  The future will include some super-smart technology.
  
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• War of words among China ride-share rivals

  11-01-2016 21:51
  
  The controversial boss of ride-sharing app Uber said Monday its biggest Chinese rival is spending as much as $80 million a week or $4 billion a year on subsidies, intensifying a war of words between the bitter competitors.
  
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• Polymer puts new medical solutions within reach

  11-01-2016 21:50
  
  Researchers, particularly those in the medical field, have been searching for a way to combine the properties of liquid crystallinity with those of hydrogels.
  
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• Interactive robot to promote rehabilitation for children with special needs

  11-01-2016 21:49
  
  NAO, a humanoid robot described by his creators as a "little character with a unique combination of hardware and software," can read your moods, recognize your family members, and learn your preferences in music, movies, and food.
  
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• Drip irrigation rates tested for eggplant growth and yield

  11-01-2016 21:46
  
  In the southeastern United States, eggplant is often produced with high levels of irrigation water and nitrogen fertilizer. Excessive irrigation rate not only wastes water and contributes to nitrogen leaching, and may also result in reduced crop yields. The authors of a report in the November 2015 issue of HortScience studied the effects of irrigation rates on eggplant, and say there is a potential to reduce current irrigation rates without negatively impacting fruit yield or quality.
  
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• Digital imagery useful for pyrethrum analysis

  11-01-2016 21:46
  
  Pyrethrum is a perennial, herbaceous plant grown mainly for the production of pyrethrins. Pyrethrins have insecticidal properties and are commonly used in natural and organic products as a pest control agent. Determining pyrethrin yield, which is measured by flower biomass and pyrethrin ester content of the biomass, has traditionally been accomplished by manually harvesting and counting pyrethrum flowers. These methods are quite labor-intensive, can be destructive to the sampled area, and may ca
  
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• Dog domestication may have increased harmful genetic changes, biologists report

  11-01-2016 21:40
  
  The domestication of dogs may have inadvertently caused harmful genetic changes, a UCLA-led study suggests.
  
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• A new way to print 3-D metals and alloys

  11-01-2016 21:30
  
  A team of Northwestern University engineers has created a new way to print three-dimensional metallic objects using rust and metal powders.
  
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• NASA eyeing an interesting weather system in northern Atlantic

  11-01-2016 21:29
  
  A non-tropical low pressure system that has a possibility of developing subtropical characteristics has developed in the Northern Hemisphere tropics. During the week of January 4, Tropical Storm Pali developed in the Northern Central Pacific Ocean. On January 10 an area of low pressure developed in the Northern Atlantic Ocean, far to the east of Bermuda and NASA's Aqua satellite captured a look at the system in infrared light.
  
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• High-Tech Toy Helps Preschool Kids Learn New Words

  11-01-2016 21:29 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Check out a demo of Square Panda's new gadget aimed at promoting literacy among preschool children.
  
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• Ford Puts Driverless Cars on Michigan's Snowy Streets

  11-01-2016 21:24 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Ford is getting a head start on making their autonomous cars feel at home in the snow.
  
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• 60% of Women in Tech Face Sexual Harassment: Survey

  11-01-2016 21:23 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  Despite the diversity initiatives of many Silicon Valley tech firms, sexual harassment is still alive and well.
  
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• 200 Cyber Activists Urge World to Say No to 'Back Doors'

  11-01-2016 21:16 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  A copy of the letter has been delivered to Obama administration officials.
  
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• Growth rings on rocks give up North American climate secrets

  11-01-2016 21:00
  
  Scientists have found a new way to tease out signals about Earth's climatic past from soil deposits on gravel and pebbles, adding an unprecedented level of detail to the existing paleoclimate record and revealing a time in North America's past when summers were wetter than normal.
  
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• Portable Gadget Lets You See How Much Pollution Is Around You

  11-01-2016 20:54 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  From a personal pollution-monitoring gadget to a new alarm clock app, click to see four gadgets that could help improve your life.
  
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• Delhi court rejects challenge to car restrictions

  11-01-2016 20:30
  
  A Delhi court on Monday rejected a legal challenge to driving restrictions aimed at reducing pollution in the smog-choked Indian capital.
  
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• SpaceX will attempt ocean landing of rocket Jan 17

  11-01-2016 20:18
  
  SpaceX will try again Sunday to land its Falcon 9 rocket on an ocean platform, one month after successfully returning the rocket's first stage to an upright landing on solid ground.
  
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• Unusual Tropical Storm Pali still thriving far from Hawaii

  11-01-2016 20:14
  
  Tropical Storm Pali, an out-of-season storm for the Central Pacific Ocean, continues to thrive about 8 degrees latitude north of the Equator. A recent infrared image from the GOES-West satellite showed that Pali a small cyclone.
  
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• Self-adaptive material heals itself, stays tough

  11-01-2016 20:12
  
  An adaptive material invented at Rice University combines self-healing and reversible self-stiffening properties.
  
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• Robotic vehicles offer a new tool in study of shark behavior

  11-01-2016 20:12
  
  The dramatic video footage of a great white shark attacking the "REMUS SharkCam" autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) brought some of the highest ratings to Discovery Channel's Shark Week 2014 and went viral on the Internet.
  
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• Study examines the downside of larger families

  11-01-2016 20:10
  
  Large families often capture the public's attention, from "The Brady Bunch" to "19 Kids and Counting." But new research from economists at the University of Houston offers strong evidence that children in larger families are more likely to fall behind in cognitive achievement and have behavioral and other problems.
  
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• Once thought unstoppable, bacterial superweapon falters with too many targets

  11-01-2016 20:09
  
  In 2006, scientists discovered that some of the world's most common disease-causing bacteria wield a uniquely powerful weapon that can kill targeted cells—both other bacterial cells and membrane-enclosed eukaryotic cells—by injecting them with toxic proteins.
  
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• Amazon to Stream Obama's Final State of the Union

  11-01-2016 19:22 via feeds.nbcnews.com
  
  After winning big in Hollywood at the Golden Globe awards, Amazon is now looking toward the nation's capital.
  
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• Microgears rotate when pushed by tiny motors

  11-01-2016 19:20
  
  (Phys.org)—Researchers have designed a new type of microgear that spins when micromotors become lodged into the corners of the gear's teeth. The micromotors use the surrounding hydrogen peroxide solution as fuel to propel themselves forward, which in turn causes the microgears to spin. In the future, the tiny gears could be used as the building blocks for making autonomous micromachines.
  
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• Powerful replacement in works for climate-modeling computer

  11-01-2016 19:10
  
  One of the most powerful computers in the world dedicated to climate change, weather and other earth science research will be replaced in 2017 by an even faster machine, officials announced Monday.
  
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• Team develops technique for detection of illicit enhancement of racing tire performance

  11-01-2016 18:58
  
  A new study from the Forensic and Investigative Sciences Program of the School of Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis explores the illicit treatment of racing tires with volatile chemicals to improve function and presents a new and effective method to determine if tires have been doctored.
  
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• If you think drones are a passing fad, better think again

  11-01-2016 18:50
  
  If you're used to thinking of drones as a passing fad, last week's CES gadget show should give you second thoughts.
  
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• Wheels to Watch: Mercedes, Porsche, Buick show new vehicles

  11-01-2016 18:32
  
  Automakers plan to debut 45 new vehicles at this year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit, which opens to the public Jan. 16. Here are some of the buzz-worthy new cars and trucks at the show.
  
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• Wheels to Watch: Audi, Volvo, Porsche, show new vehicles (Update)

  11-01-2016 18:32
  
  Automakers plan to debut 45 new vehicles at this year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit, which opens to the public Jan. 16. Here are some of the buzz-worthy new cars and trucks at the show.
  
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• West Coast study emphasizes challenges faced by marine organisms exposed to global change

  11-01-2016 18:30
  
  The Pacific Ocean along the West Coast serves as a model for how other areas of the ocean could respond in coming decades as the climate warms and emission of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide increases. This region—the coastal ocean stretching from British Columbia to Mexico—provides an early warning signal of what to expect as ocean acidification continues and as low-oxygen zones expand.
  
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• NASA sees Tropical Cyclone Ula's eye closing

  11-01-2016 18:29
  
  NASA satellite imagery showed that Tropical Cyclone Ula's eye appeared to be "closing" as clouds began filling it. Meanwhile New Caledonia remained on alert as the powerful storm continued moving away.
  
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• Ancient burial rituals prove you can take it with you... and what you take says a lot

  11-01-2016 18:28
  
  Death is inevitable, but what death shows us about the social behaviors of the living is not.
  
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• Two-in-one packaging may increase drug efficacy and reduce side effects

  11-01-2016 18:27
  
  Chemotherapy often comes with powerful side effects, and one of the reasons for this is that the drugs used to kill cancer cells can also damage other fast-growing cells in the body, like hair follicles. But one possibility for reducing these side effects may be if the chemotherapy drugs only become toxic when they reach the tumor.
  
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• Single molecule detection of contaminants, explosives or diseases now possible

  11-01-2016 18:10
  
  A technique that combines the ultrasensitivity of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) with a slippery surface invented by Penn State researchers will make it feasible to detect single molecules of a number of chemical and biological species from gaseous, liquid or solid samples. This combination of slippery surface and laser-based spectroscopy will open new applications in analytical chemistry, molecular diagnostics, environmental monitoring and national security.
  
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• Do video games affect college students' capability for suicide?

  11-01-2016 18:10
  
  Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college students in the U.S., and a new study suggests that students who play many hours of action video games in particular may be more capable of acting on suicidal thoughts. The study linking action video games, which usually involve violence and aggressive content, to acquired capability for suicide is published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking.
  
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• PhD Project Plan published to invite community feedback early on

  11-01-2016 18:09
  
  Development and implementation of novel methods for publication, visualisation and dissemination of the constantly growing biodiversity and genomic bioinformatic data are the main objective of the first PhD Project Plan available from the open-access Research Ideas and Outcomes journal, a journal created to publish the outputs of the whole research cycle. Founded on the principles of open science, the project addresses digitally born scholarly papers and digitised data, aiming to make them more
  
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• Will computers ever truly understand what we're saying?

  11-01-2016 18:00
  
  From Apple's Siri to Honda's robot Asimo, machines seem to be getting better and better at communicating with humans.
  
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• Two-Stage Process Makes Incandescent Bulbs More Efficient

  11-01-2016 17:49 via scitechdaily.com
  
  Using a two-stage process that captures heat loss and reflects it back to the filament to be re-absorbed and re-emitted as visible light, engineers from MIT have combined the warm look of traditional light bulbs with 21st-century energy efficiency. Traditional light bulbs, thought to be well on their way to oblivion, may receive a reprieve […]
  The post Two-Stage Process Makes Incandescent Bulbs More Efficient appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Thousands of landslides in Nepal earthquake raise parallels for Pacific Northwest

  11-01-2016 17:45
  
  Research teams have evaluated the major 7.8 magnitude subduction zone earthquake in Gorkha, Nepal, in April 2015, and identified characteristics that may be of special relevance to the future of the Pacific Northwest.
  
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• UN experts warn about British investigatory powers bill

  11-01-2016 17:40
  
  U.N. human rights experts say a legislative bill in Britain aimed at increasing powers of authorities to monitor suspects could threaten freedom of expression and association.
  
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• The Latest: What Volvo's new semi-autonomous sedan can do (Update 2)

  11-01-2016 17:38
  
  The latest developments from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
  
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• The Latest: What Volvo's new semi-autonomous sedan can do (Update)

  11-01-2016 17:38
  
  The latest developments from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
  
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• The Latest: GM plays up speed of its electric car, the Bolt

  11-01-2016 17:38
  
  The latest developments from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
  
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