Sci-Tech news

• Awesome autonomy: The future force and RoboBoats

  15-07-2016 23:59
  
  The future of naval engineering was on display last week, as 13 teams of high school and college students did battle at the ninth annual RoboBoat Competition in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
  
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• How does water behave in space? Researchers aim to solve longstanding mystery

  15-07-2016 23:58
  
  An astronaut holds a glass jar half-full of water in the near-zero gravity of space. How does the water look inside the jar? Does it form a single ball, sit on the bottom of the jar, or cling to its walls? For decades, no one has had definitive answers to these questions—and now U of T Engineering researchers intend to solve the mystery once and for all.
  
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• 'Noah's Ark' ex silico

  15-07-2016 23:57
  
  Brian Enquist, a professor in the University of Arizona's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, has joined an international team of scientists that will provide tropical countries with the information needed to avoid extinctions due to climate change.
  
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• Fast food might soon come with a side of Pokemon - CNET

  15-07-2016 23:47
  
  CNET
  Fast food might soon come with a side of Pokemon
  CNET
  "Would you like Pokemon with that?" One day soon, McDonald's might ask you that question. That's because Pokemon Go, the mobile sensation that may now be more popular than Facebook, will allow companies to pay to have their real-world locations ...
  Commentary: Pokemon Go isn't especially hazardous; it's just popularPress Herald
  Forget Pokémon Go, there's another augmented reality game that's way betterQuartz
  All around the w
  
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• MRI machine at the nanoscale breaks world records

  15-07-2016 23:30
  
  A new nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) microscope gives researchers an improved instrument to study fundamental physical processes. It also offers new possibilities for medical science—for example, to better study proteins in Alzheimer's patients' brains. The development has been reported in Physical Review Applied.
  
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• New rover will be able to hear Mars

  15-07-2016 23:29 via rss.cnn.com
  
  When the newly developed Mars 2020 rover lands on the Red Planet in February 2021 after embarking on a seven-month cruise through space, we will be able to hear sounds of the landing and the Martian surface for the first time, according to NASA.
  
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• Microsoft's HoloLens site reinforces every gendered stereotype in tech - Business Insider

  15-07-2016 23:08
  
  Business Insider
  Microsoft's HoloLens site reinforces every gendered stereotype in tech
  Business Insider
  On Microsoft's website for its HoloLens apps — applications available for its augmented reality headset — it depicts men and women using the hardware in very different ways. Let's take a look at the future for men in augmented reality! Men — they ...
  This surgeon is pretty excited by his first HoloLens experienceWinBeta
  'Pokémon Go' gets in your face with an unoffici
  
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• New Icons Added to Emoji Set in Boost for Equality

  15-07-2016 22:52
  
  The 11 new professions will be available in male and female and all skin tones.
  
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• That big pub crawl downtown? It's just "Pokemon Go" fans

  15-07-2016 22:40
  
  If you thought it was bad dodging phone-fixated "Pokemon Go" players on the sidewalk, just wait: Legions of tipsy people could soon be chasing cartoon monsters from one tavern to the next in a series of pub crawls planned for cities across the U.S.
  
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• Pokemon Go Wrong: Mobile Game Unleashes Chaos

  15-07-2016 22:35 via nbcnews.com
  
  From dead bodies to several robberies, some players of the wildly popular augmented reality game are discovering danger instead of Pokemon.
  
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• This new map of the universe charts out 1.2 million galaxies - The Verge

  15-07-2016 22:27
  
  The Verge
  This new map of the universe charts out 1.2 million galaxies
  The Verge
  In an attempt to better understand the nature of the expansion of our universe, scientists have created a 3D map plotting the locations of 1.2 million galaxies. This map may help give astronomers new details about how the universe has been expanding ...
  New 3D Map of the Universe Features a Whopping 1.2 Million GalaxiesGizmodo
  Scientists create 3-D map of universe – and validate Einstein's theoriesChristian S
  
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• Researchers discover real reason why turtles have shells

  15-07-2016 22:05
  
  It is common knowledge that the modern turtle shell is largely used for protection. No other living vertebrate has so drastically altered its body to form such an impenetrable protective structure as the turtle. However, a new study by an international group of paleontologists suggests that the broad ribbed proto shell on the earliest partially shelled fossil turtles was initially an adaptation, for burrowing underground, not for protection. Paleontologist Tyler Lyson from the Denver Museum of N
  
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• NASA's next Mars rover progresses toward 2020 launch

  15-07-2016 21:40
  
  After an extensive review process and passing a major development milestone, NASA is ready to proceed with final design and construction of its next Mars rover, currently targeted to launch in summer of 2020 and arrive on the Red Planet in February 2021.
  
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• NASA’s Top 10 Pluto Pics from the New Horizons Spacecraft

  15-07-2016 20:31 via scitechdaily.com
  
  One year ago, NASA’s New Horizons mission made history by exploring Pluto and its moons – giving humankind our first real look at this fascinating world on the frontier of our solar system. Since those amazing days in July 2015 the New Horizons spacecraft has transmitted numerous images and many other kinds of data home […]
  The post NASA’s Top 10 Pluto Pics from the New Horizons Spacecraft appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Microsoft says it will take longer to reach Windows 10 goal

  15-07-2016 20:16
  
  Microsoft is backing off its ambitious goal of getting Windows 10 on 1 billion devices by 2018.
  
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• Ptarmigan in Colorado have varied reproduction, not likely linked to warming trends

  15-07-2016 20:15
  
  Animals that live at high elevations are often assumed to be at risk for extinction as habitats warm and change. But a new study led by Colorado State University researchers found that ptarmigan, which live in cold ecosystems, are not strongly affected by fluctuations in seasonal weather at two populations studied in Colorado.
  
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• Hollywood reacts to 'Pokemon Go' craze

  15-07-2016 20:15
  
  "Pokemon Go" has caught the public's attention—and Hollywood is no exception.
  
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• 40-year-old chorus frog tissues vital to Louisiana hybrid zone study

  15-07-2016 20:13
  
  LSU researchers Jeremy M. Brown and Eric N. Rittmeyer, in collaboration with colleagues at Florida State University, are shedding light on how often and where species hybridize through time, thanks to the rediscovery of 40-year-old tissue samples preserved at the LSU Museum of Natural Science, or LSUMNS. In a recent study published in Ecology and Evolution, they show that two species of chorus frogs now form hybrids across a much wider area of Louisiana and Mississippi than they did just 30-40 y
  
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• Chandra Reveals Evidence for Violent Stellar Merger

  15-07-2016 20:10 via scitechdaily.com
  
  Using data from Chandra, astronomers have the strongest evidence to date that violent stellar mergers produce pencil-thin jets. This result has implications for estimating the number of such mergers that may detected with gravitational wave observatories. Gamma-ray bursts, or GRBs, are some of the most violent and energetic events in the Universe. Although these events […]
  The post Chandra Reveals Evidence for Violent Stellar Merger appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Sex in the city: Peregrine falcons in Chicago don't cheat

  15-07-2016 20:00
  
  Peregrine Falcons, in their normal habitat on isolated cliffs, mate for life. But some 25 pairs now nest on Chicago skyscrapers and bridges, and city living has them in much closer quarters than they used before humans dominated the landscape. A group of Field Museum and University of Illinois, Chicago scientists investigated whether typical breeding patterns hold true for these new city-dwellers and, in a paper published in PLOS ONE, confirmed that even in the big city, the birds that prey toge
  
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• A 'bridge' of carbon between nerve tissues

  15-07-2016 20:00
  
  A new material made of carbon nanotubes supports the growth of nerve fibers, bridging segregated neural explants and providing a functional re-connection. The study, which was coordinated by SISSA in Trieste, also observed biocompatibility of the material in vivo, demonstrating that implanting it into the brain of small rodents does not cause large scars or a marked immune response. The study, published in Science Advances demonstrates that the material could be evaluated for prosthetic nervous
  
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• A Quiet Space in the Core of the Perseus Cluster

  15-07-2016 19:58 via scitechdaily.com
  
  Using the Hitomi satellite astronomers find that turbulence in the central region of the Perseus cluster is low, implying that errors in previous measurements of the masses of galaxy clusters using X-ray observations are small. Most galaxies lie in clusters, groupings of a few to many thousands of galaxies. Our Milky Way galaxy itself is […]
  The post A Quiet Space in the Core of the Perseus Cluster appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Drone saves man from heart attack

  15-07-2016 19:45 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Iowa first responders turned to a new colleague when searching for missing boaters Wednesday night.
  
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• Starbucks, McDonald's block porn from their WiFi

  15-07-2016 19:30 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Anti-pornography groups have succeeded in their efforts to get Starbucks and McDonald's to block porn on the chains' Wi-Fi networks.
  
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• Tesla Plagued by Safety Probes and Weak Production

  15-07-2016 19:24 via nbcnews.com
  
  Tesla is currently processing a fatal crash, a federal safety probe, weak production, and a major acquisition that has soured long-time proponents.
  
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• New tool calculates emissions impacts, energy benefits from smart grid investments

  15-07-2016 19:18
  
  "Smart grid" technologies significantly reduce greenhouse gases and other emissions resulting from power production and usage. Taken together, smart grid and intelligent buildings mechanisms could reduce national carbon emissions by 12 percent by 2030, according to one estimate. But, surprisingly, sometimes the opposite is true for an individual project. It all depends on a dizzying variety of factors, but a new tool developed at the U.S. Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laborat
  
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• Satellite sees Tropical Depression 6E form in Eastern Pacific

  15-07-2016 19:17
  
  The sixth tropical depression of the Eastern Pacific Ocean formed on July 15 and was captured in an image from NOAA's GOES-West satellite.
  
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• Biochemists feed 'poison pill' to deadly virus with a funny name

  15-07-2016 19:17
  
  It has a funny name - coxsackievirus - but there's nothing funny about how this tiny germ and its close relatives sicken their hosts.
  
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• NASA satellites see weaker Tropical Storm Celia move into central Pacific

  15-07-2016 19:09
  
  Tropical Storm Celia has crossed 140 degrees west longitude line, which means the storm has moved from the Eastern into the Central Pacific Ocean. Infrared imagery from NASA's Aqua satellite showed Celia had lost most of its punch.
  
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• Route 66 becoming green with charging stations, solar panels

  15-07-2016 18:26
  
  Route 66, a highway made famous for attracting gas-guzzling Chevrolet Bel Airs traveling from Chicago to Los Angeles, is turning green.
  
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• Simpler, faster and cheaper: A full-filling approach to making carbon nanotubes of consistent quality

  15-07-2016 18:23
  
  Just as many of us might be resigned to clogged salt shakers or rush-hour traffic, those working to exploit the special properties of carbon nanotubes have typically shrugged their shoulders when these tiniest of cylinders fill with water during processing. But for nanotube practitioners who have reached their Popeye threshold and "can't stands no more," the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has devised a cheap, quick and effective strategy that reliably enhances the quality
  
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• NASA sees Darby's clouded eye

  15-07-2016 18:23
  
  The Suomi NPP satellite passed over Hurricane Darby and saw clouds in its eye as the storm continued tracking west in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.
  
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• Make way for ducklings — they're smarter than you think - Washington Post

  15-07-2016 17:48
  
  Washington Post
  Make way for ducklings — they're smarter than you think
  Washington Post
  You better watch who you're calling "bird brain." A new study in the journal Science suggests that some birds are smarter than we realized. The study, which was conducted by zoologists Antone Martinho III and Alex Kacelnik at Oxford University, found ...
  Duck, Duck, Goose, Goose. Newborn Ducklings Judge Shapes and ColorNew York Times
  Are You Smarter Than A Duckling?BuzzFeed News
  Are ducklings capable o
  
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• Yelp Now Lets You Search Businesses by Pokestop - PC Magazine

  15-07-2016 17:27
  
  PC Magazine
  Yelp Now Lets You Search Businesses by Pokestop
  PC Magazine
  The Pokeconomy is growing by leaps and bounds as Pokemon Go continues to break app download and daily active user records. Now, Yelp has rolled out a new filter letting users search directly for local Pokestops. Yelp Pokestop The new filter works the ...
  Yelp adds Pokémon Go filter so you can stop wasting time at PokéStop-less restaurantsVentureBeat
  Finding Pokémon Go's PokéStops just got si
  
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• WATCH: Techbytes: Online Streaming Services Rake in Emmy Nominations

  15-07-2016 17:26
  
  Services like Netflix and Amazon received over 100 nominations for shows.
  
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• She's 15, loves tech, and wants to be a farmer

  15-07-2016 17:09 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Kayla Visser has charted out her summer plans with two seemingly disparate pursuits: farming and technology.
  
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• UNESCO announces 9 new World Heritage Sites (Update)

  15-07-2016 16:32
  
  The U.N. cultural agency on Friday placed nine new sites on its World Heritage List, including a medieval Armenian city located in northeast Turkey.
  
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• UNESCO announces 4 new World Heritage Sites

  15-07-2016 16:32
  
  UNESCO has put four new sites on its World Heritage List.
  
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• Printable prosthetics: Low-cost help for people in crisis zones

  15-07-2016 16:24
  
  In areas of conflict, people lose their limbs every day due to weapons and mines. Prosthetics could help the victims, but even simple models are unaffordable for most sufferers. Researchers at FAU and Fachhochschule Lübeck are working together on a way to develop custom-fit prosthetics, with the help of 3D scanning and printing, which is simple and inexpensive, yet can be done locally using recycled materials. Their work has now been recognised as one of 100 projects in Germany as a 'Landma
  
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• Molecular switch for controlling color and fluorescence

  15-07-2016 16:20
  
  A collaboration of researchers from Kumamoto, Yamaguchi, and Osaka Universities in Japan have discovered a new method of drastically changing the color and fluorescence of a particular compound using only oxygen (O2) and hydrogen (H2) gases. The fully reversible reaction is environmentally friendly since it produces only water as a byproduct. Rather than using electrical or photo energy, the discovery uses energy from the gases themselves, which is expected to become a future trend, to switch th
  
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• This camera promises to change how we make movies

  15-07-2016 16:19 via rss.cnn.com
  
  Just as the movie industry was getting used to the transition from celluloid to digital, up pops another technological revolution in the shape of a new breed of camera.
  
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• Scientists solve structure of cold virus linked to childhood asthma

  15-07-2016 16:18
  
  The atomic structure of an elusive cold virus linked to severe asthma and respiratory infections in children has been solved by a team of researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Purdue University.
  
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• Genetic roots of insect's waterproof coating could lead to innovative pest control

  15-07-2016 16:13
  
  An international team of scientists led by University of Hawai'i at Mānoa researcher Joanne Yew may have discovered a new and effective way to control insect pests that are a threat to agriculture and humans. Yew and her team identified a gene in vinegar flies responsible for the insect's waterproof coating, which provides them protection from microbes and environmental stress. They nicknamed the gene spidey and announced the findings in a recently published study in PLOS Genetics.
  
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• Kuwait says 'no' to 'Pokemon Go' at 'sensitive landmarks'

  15-07-2016 16:01
  
  Kuwait is saying "no" to "Pokemon Go" in certain places.
  
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• Researchers find more aggressive behavior in city birds than rural ones

  15-07-2016 15:50
  
  No need to head to the movie theater or download the video game app: Angry Birds can be found right in your backyard this summer—if you live in the suburbs, that is.
  
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• Calcification – does it pay off in the future ocean?

  15-07-2016 15:50
  
  An international research team has calculated the costs and benefits of calcification for phytoplankton and the impact of climate change on their important role in the world's oceans.
  
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• Biochemists gain new insights into biogenesis of ribosomes

  15-07-2016 15:50
  
  A type of scaffolding on which specialised workers ply their trade helps in the manufacturing process of the two subunits from which the ribosome – the protein factory of the cell – originates. Biochemists at Heidelberg University discovered it after succeeding in getting a peek into the ribosomal "birthing room". While studying baker's yeast as the model organism, the researchers, in collaboration with colleagues from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, discovered a shell that e
  
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• New protocol enables analysis of metabolic products from fixed tissues

  15-07-2016 15:45
  
  Scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München have developed a new mass spectrometry imaging method which, for the first time, makes it possible to analyze hundreds of metabolites in fixed tissue samples. Their findings, published in the journal Nature Protocols, explain the new access to metabolic information, which will offer previously unexploited potential for tissue-based research and molecular diagnostics.
  
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• Pushing a single-molecule switch

  15-07-2016 15:44
  
  An international team of researchers from Donostia International Physics Center, Fritz-Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society, University of Liverpool, and the Polish Academy of Sciences has shown a new way to operate a single-molecule switch by applying an external force.
  
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• Olive oil waste used to produce molecules with myriad uses in chemical and food industries

  15-07-2016 15:44
  
  A team of researchers from the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Granada has successfully used various olive industry waste products to produce surface active agents. More specifically, they have produced biosurfactants and monoglycerides, molecules which have innumerable applications in the chemical and food industries.
  
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