Sci-Tech news

• Is there a way to send excess rainfall to the desert?

  04-08-2017 22:00
  
  ScienceYou would need a very, very big boat
  Sending excess water to an area in need sounds ideal, but the fuel costs would be too much. Read on.
  
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• Kuiper Belt Object 2014 MU69 Just Got a Lot More Interesting

  04-08-2017 21:33 via scitechdaily.com
  New Horizons’ next target just got a lot more interesting. Astronomers believe Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69 may actually be two objects that are close...
  The post Kuiper Belt Object2014 MU69 Just Got a Lot More Interesting appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Nigerian man charged in US school districts phishing scam

  04-08-2017 20:47
  A Nigerian citizen has been arrested in a phishing scheme that targeted school districts in Connecticut and Minnesota in an effort to get employees' personal information and file bogus tax returns, federal authorities said Friday.
  
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• Tropical Depression 11E 'born' with wind shear on satellite imagery

  04-08-2017 20:46
  The eleventh tropical depression of the Eastern Pacific Ocean hurricane season came together on August 4 even though it was being affected by vertical wind shear.
  
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• New, more sensitive sensor for evaluating drug safety

  04-08-2017 20:46
  A new technique for evaluating drug safety can detect stress on cells at earlier stages than conventional methods, which mostly rely on detecting cell death. The new method uses a fluorescent sensor that is turned on in a cell when misfolded proteins begin to aggregate—an early sign of cellular stress. The method can be adapted to detect protein aggregates caused by other toxins, as well as diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's. A paper describing the new method, by a team of researc
  
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• NASA spies wind shear still affecting Tropical Storm Nalgae

  04-08-2017 20:46
  Tropical Storm Nalgae can't seem to get a break from vertical wind shear. The storm has been dealing with wind shear since it formed and NASA's Terra satellite observed that was still the case on August 4.
  
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• Recreating the wild: De-extinction, technology, and the ethics of conservation

  04-08-2017 20:44
  Is extinction forever? Efforts are under way to use gene editing and other tools of biotechnology to "recreate" extinct species such as the woolly mammoth and the passenger pigeon. Could such "de-extinction" initiatives aid conservation by reviving species lost to habitat destruction and climate change? Or are they more likely to hinder conservation? What should the guiding ideals of conservation be in a new age of biotechnology? These are some of the questions addressed in Recreating the Wild:
  
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• Job gains for Americans with disabilities add to strength of labor market

  04-08-2017 20:41
  Sustained job growth for Americans with disabilities contributed to the upward trend in the labor market, according to today's National Trends in Disability Employment - Monthly Update (nTIDE), issued by Kessler Foundation and the University of New Hampshire's Institute on Disability (UNH-IOD). This extends the record trend to 16 consecutive months for this population. Integrating resources and strategies among stakeholder groups, including funders, government agencies, community organizations,
  
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• Financial decisions influenced by intensity of light

  04-08-2017 20:40
  A study of more than 2,500 people provides new evidence about the effects of luminance on the quality and consistency of our financial decision-making.
  
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• Primordial black holes may have helped to forge heavy elements

  04-08-2017 20:38
  Astronomers like to say we are the byproducts of stars, stellar furnaces that long ago fused hydrogen and helium into the elements needed for life through the process of stellar nucleosynthesis.
  
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• NASA sees wide-eyed Typhoon Noru headed for landfall in Kyushu, Japan

  04-08-2017 20:34
  Typhoon Noru was churning just south of the southwestern-most island of Japan when NASA's Terra satellite captured an image of the storm with an eye over 35 miles wide. The Joint Typhoon Warning Center expects Noru to make landfall in Kyushu by August 6.
  
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• Arrest shines light on shadowy community of good, bad hackers (Update)

  04-08-2017 20:34
  Two months ago, Marcus Hutchins was an "accidental hero," a young computer whiz living with his parents in Britain who found the "kill switch" to the devastating WannaCry ransomware.
  
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• Arrest shines light on shadowy community of good, bad hackers

  04-08-2017 20:34
  Two months ago, Marcus Hutchins was an "accidental hero," a young computer whiz living with his parents in Britain who found the "kill switch" to the devastating WannaCry ransomware.
  
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• How to build an hourglass watchtower

  04-08-2017 20:30
  
  DIYSurvey any threats to your castle—er, home.
  You don’t need a lofty purpose in order to build your own hourglass watchtower. You can do it just because they’re fun to make and let you take in a lovely view.
  
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• Solar Dynamics Observatory Tracks an Active Region on the Sun

  04-08-2017 20:21 via scitechdaily.com
  NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) watched an active region — an area of intense and complex magnetic fields — rotate into view on the Sun...
  The post Solar Dynamics Observatory Tracks an Active Region on the Sun appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Microbot origami can capture, transport single cells

  04-08-2017 20:00
  Researchers at North Carolina State University and Duke University have developed a way to assemble and pre-program tiny structures made from microscopic cubes - "microbot origami" - to change their shape when actuated by a magnetic field and then, using the magnetic energy from their environment, perform a variety of tasks - including capturing and transporting single cells.
  
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• Juno Views a Storm on the Southern Edge of Jupiter’s Northern Polar Region

  04-08-2017 19:14 via scitechdaily.com
  NASA’s Juno Spacecraft viewed a storm at the southern edge of Jupiter’s northern polar region as it performed its seventh close flyby of Jupiter. This...
  The post Juno Views a Storm on the Southern Edge of Jupiter’s Northern Polar Region appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• Astronomers Study Magnetic Fields in the Massive Dense Cores of the DR21 Filament

  04-08-2017 19:02 via scitechdaily.com
  New research from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics examines six dense cores in a nearby star formation region, revealing that magnetic effects are primarily important...
  The post Astronomers Study Magnetic Fields in the Massive Dense Cores of the DR21 Filament appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• There's a Smartphone Showdown Brewing Between Apple, Samsung

  04-08-2017 18:23 via nbcnews.com
  Samsung and Apple are both expected to announce new smartphones in the next few weeks.
  
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• Elgato Eve Motion Review: A smart sensor to automate Apple households

  04-08-2017 17:39
  
  GadgetsThis robotic eyeball can perform groups of tasks based on your motion or lack thereof.
  This HomeKit-specific motion sensor knows when you're moving around and when you're not. Read on.
  
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• Growing skin in a lab has benefits for humans and turtles alike

  04-08-2017 16:40
  
  AnimalsScientists just engineered reptile skin for the first time.
  Scientists recently engineered reptile skin for the first time, but we’ve been growing our own versions of mammalian skin for decades.
  
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• Wildlife royalties—a future for conservation?

  04-08-2017 16:12
  Should people who profit from the cultural representation of wildlife pay towards conservation?
  
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• Drug safety for penguins

  04-08-2017 16:11
  Researchers from the University's Institute of Translational Medicine have determined the most effective drug dose to help penguins in managed care fight off disease.
  
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• Two weeks in the life of a sunspot

  04-08-2017 16:09
  On July 5, 2017, NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory watched an active region—an area of intense and complex magnetic fields—rotate into view on the Sun. The satellite continued to track the region as it grew and eventually rotated across the Sun and out of view on July 17.
  
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• Scientists discover unknown virus in 'throwaway' DNA

  04-08-2017 16:05
  A chance discovery has opened up a new method of finding unknown viruses.
  
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• Researcher's paper challenges the claim that the genus Homo originated in response to environmental changes

  04-08-2017 16:04
  An often cited claim that humans, who are smarter and more technologically advanced than their ancestors, originated in response to climate change is challenged in a new report by a Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology researcher at George Washington University.
  
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• Why humans find faulty robots more likeable

  04-08-2017 15:57
  It has been argued that the ability of humans to recognize social signals is crucial to mastering social intelligence - but can robots learn to read human social cues and adapt or correct their own behavior accordingly?
  
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• New model for bimolecular reactions in nanoreactors

  04-08-2017 15:39
  Theoretical physicists have devised a mathematical model of two different molecules reacting within so called nanoreactors that act as catalysts. They gained surprising new insights as to what factors promote reactions and how to control and select them. The model is relevant for a wide range of research fields, from biophysics to energy materials.
  
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• Eclipse to shed light on weather in space and on Earth

  04-08-2017 15:38
  When a total solar eclipse sweeps across U.S. skies on Monday, Aug. 21, UMass Lowell faculty and students will be stationed around the country, conducting research that will be used to better predict the weather and improve GPS, satellite and shortwave-radio communications.
  
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• Physicists investigate fundamental limits of quantum engines

  04-08-2017 15:30
  (Phys.org)—Quantum engines are known to operate differently than—and in some cases, outperform—their classical counterparts. However, previous research on the performance of quantum engines may be overestimating their advantages. In a new study, physicists have developed an improved method to compute the efficiency of quantum engines. They show that the ultimate efficiency of quantum systems is subject to tighter fundamental limits than those imposed by the second law of thermo
  
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• Heatstruck Italy starts harvesting its thirsty vines

  04-08-2017 15:10
  Italy's annual wine harvest, the biggest in the world, is off to its earliest start in a decade as the country swelters in a heatwave following months of drought.
  
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• Young eagle rescued at Florida garbage collection center

  04-08-2017 15:08
  Wildlife officials have rescued a juvenile bald eagle that was suffering from poisoning at a Florida trash and garbage collection center.
  
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• Skin-ditching gecko inexplicably leaves body armor behind when threatened

  04-08-2017 15:05
  When trouble looms, the fish-scale geckos of Madagascar resort to what might seem like an extreme form of self-defense—tearing out of their own skin.
  
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• Seasonal effects: 'Winter foals' are smaller than foals born in summer

  04-08-2017 15:04
  Season determines behaviour, metabolism and reproductive activity in many animal species, including horses. Even in domesticated horse breeds metabolic activity is reduced in winter. Although these effects are known since a few years, effects on pregnant mares and their foals have not been investigated so far. Researchers from Vetmeduni Vienna have now demonstrated that seasonal changes during winter have a strong influence on pregnancy and foetal development. Foals born early in the year are sm
  
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• Five rad and random camping things I found this week

  04-08-2017 15:01
  
  GadgetsThe end-of-week dispatch from PopSci's commerce editor. Vol. 20.
  Rad and random things to make your camping trip more a lot more fun. From Star Wars sleeping bags to a nifty new survival book. Read on.
  
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• Nanoparticles trick body into accepting organ transplants

  04-08-2017 15:00
  Using nanoparticles, Yale researchers have developed a drug-delivery system that could reduce organ transplant complications by hiding the donated tissue from the recipient's immune system.
  
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