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Top Stories in Science
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June 2007 Issue |
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| [D] Defence and security |  |
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Environmental security In a joint statement titled "Growth and Responsibility in the World Economy", world leaders at the meeting of G8 industrialised nations agreed on the need for "substantial global emissions reductions" to fight climate change. The declaration was supported by the US. [D][E]
Middle East at Risk According to the World Economic Forum, climate change and energy security are among the greatest risks facing the Middle East, as a scarcity of natural resources disrupts the social fabric and as Western states try to move away from hydrocarbons. The report titled "Middle East at Risk" points among other factors to the danger of conflict over water. It says that there is already a growing lack of freshwater supplies in the region caused both by global warming and by increasing overuse of existing sources. The World Bank has estimated that water available per person in the Middle East and North Africa could fall by half by 2050. [D][E][P][X]
Nuclear fuel bank An international scheme to produce a controlled supply of enriched uranium has won support from the US and Russia. The fuel bank would produce enriched uranium so that countries building nuclear reactors could buy fuel from the bank rather than enriching uranium themselves. They would not therefore need to possess enrichment facilities that could also be used to make nuclear weapons. [D][M][P]
Bird flu protection Antibodies derived from two Vietnamese patients who survived H5N1 bird flu could lead to treatments that complement flu vaccines and anti-viral drugs in the event of a pandemic. The antibodies were made from the patients’ blood cells grown in the lab. In tests on mice, the antibodies cured mice infected with the H5N1 virus even when administered three days after the mice were infected. All 20 mice in the treatment groups survived whilst all the mice in the untreated control group died. The antibodies were found to also work as a preventive therapy when given before the mice were infected. The researchers hope the antibodies can offer protection against several different strains of the virus simultaneously. They probably cannot be used to protect an entire population because they are likely to be costlier and harder to mass produce than antiviral drugs. But they could be used to protect key workers. [D][H][W]
Safety of Taser weapons A Taser subdues a person by delivering an electrical current that interferes with the body’s neuromuscular system, temporarily incapacitating the recipient. It is designed to be a non-lethal weapon that causes no lasting injury. Phase 1 of a study to test the safety of using Tasers has found that they caused no lasting effects on healthy test subjects. Phase 2 of the two-year study is now testing the affects of Taser use on subjects who are under additional stress. [D][H] |
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| [A] Aeronautics and space | |
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Bat flight During a wing-upstroke, birds can separate their feathers to let air pass through. Bats, however, have membranous wings that resist the air. A new study at the University of Lund has revealed how bats deal with this aerodynamic challenge by either bending their wings backwards as they lift them, or retracting them. The new findings may help engineers in designing small UAVs. [A][U]
Servicing spacecraft far from Earth Hubble's successor, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), to be launched in 2013, will be positioned at the second Sun-Earth Lagrangian point (L2), 1.5 million km from Earth in the direction opposite the Sun. In this position, the JWST will provide an infrared view of unprecedented clarity, allowing it to glimpse the universe's first galaxies and study developing solar systems. It was originally thought that L2 was too far from Earth for the telescope to be serviced or repaired during its mission. However, NASA officials say they are now looking into minor modifications to the design to allow a servicing spacecraft to dock with the telescope. L2 is a good spot for space-based observatories. At L2 the combined gravitational forces of the Sun and the Earth balance the centrifugal force on the satellite. It therefore maintains a constant orientation with respect to the Sun and Earth, which makes the shielding and calibration of instruments much simpler. The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe is already in orbit at L2, and the future Herschel Space Observatory and Gaia probe will also be placed at L2. [A][R][U]
Advanced warning of solar storms A scientist using the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) has found a way to forecast solar radiation storms. The new method can offer enough advance warning to give astronauts time to seek shelter and ground controllers time to safeguard their satellites when a storm is approaching. Every radiation storm is a mix of electrons, protons and heavier ions. The electrons, being lighter and faster, arrive first. By measuring the rise time and intensity of the initial electron surge it is possible to tell how serious the flux of the much more dangerous ions will be and when it will arrive. Testing the technique on SOHO data showed that it successfully predicted all four major ion storms of 2003 with advance warnings ranging from 7 to 74 minutes. It also produced three false alarms, but it is still more reliable than previous techniques. [A][I][P][R]
Origin of the Sun's chromosphere It has long been a mystery why the Sun is surrounded by regions called the chromosphere and corona that are very much hotter than the Sun's visible surface (the photosphere). The chromosphere is largely responsible for the Sun's deep ultraviolet radiation and also has the strongest solar connection to climate variability. Researchers have now shown the chromosphere is powered by sound. Using spacecraft, ground-based telescopes, and computer simulations, they have shown that the Sun's magnetic field allows the release of wave energy from its interior, permitting sound waves to travel through thin fountains of plasma upward and into the solar chromosphere. By analyzing motions of the solar atmosphere in detail, the scientists observed that where there are strong knots in the Sun's magnetic field, sound waves from the interior can leak out and propagate upward into its atmosphere. [A][R]
Spacecraft health On long missions, biological growths in spaceships could present a serious problem. As well as being a possible health hazard to astronauts, microorganisms can attack the structure of a spacecraft. They can degrade carbon steel and even stainless steel, and in corners where two different materials meet, they can set up a galvanic circuit and cause corrosion. They can also produce acids that pit metal, etch glass, and make rubber brittle, and can foul air and water filters. The problem first became apparent on the Russian space station MIR. For the future, astronauts will use new handheld sensors that can diagnose the presence of bacteria or fungi within minutes. By getting the results this quickly, astronauts will know which cleaning compound work best to prevent a spacecraft or habitat from "falling ill." The eventual aim is for a handheld device that can identify thousands of individual microorganisms. [A][E][H][S]
Radiation-eating fungi Researches have found that dark-coloured fungi can use melanin to harness nuclear radiation as an energy source. They speculate that fungi might be grown off the high-radiation environment in space to feed astronauts on extended space missions. Melanin is found in many if not most fungal species. But up until now, its biological role in fungi has been a mystery. [A][E]
Life on Mars A patch of Martian soil analyzed by NASA's rover Spirit is so rich in silica that it may provide some of the strongest evidence yet that ancient Mars was much wetter than it is now and may well have had conditions favourable for life. One possible origin for the silica could have been interaction of soil with acid vapours produced by volcanic activity in the presence of water. Another could have been from water in a hot spring environment. In either case, abundant water would have been essential. [A]
Global space exploration strategy Fourteen space agencies have agreed to co-ordinate future space exploration of the Moon and Mars. They have published a document that contains their common space goals. It outlines the rationale for society to explore space and the current interest in returning to the Moon and exploring Mars. The document called "The Global Exploration Strategy: The Framework for Co-ordination" is non-binding but will help different countries exchange information on their space plans, according to NASA. [A][D][E][M][P][T][U][R] |
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| [U] Unmanned vehicles and robotics | |
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Battlefield rescue robot A remote-controlled robot that will rescue injured or abducted soldiers, without putting the lives of their comrades at risk, is being developed for the US army. The 1.8-metre-tall Battlefield Extraction-Assist Robot (Bear) will be able to travel over bumpy terrain and squeeze through doorways while carrying an injured soldier in its arms. [U][D]
Artificial cerebellum A European project called Sensopac is aiming to incorporate an artificial cerebellum into a robot. The cerebellum is the part of the brain that controls motor functions. The artificial cerebellum uses microchips that include a full neuronal system, emulating the way the cerebellum interacts with the human nervous system. The hope is this will allow robots to manipulate and interact with other objects with far greater subtlety than industrial robots can currently manage. [U][B][C] |
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| [P] Propulsion and energy | |
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More fuel-efficient engines In today's internal combustion engines, the operation of the valves is linked mechanically to the movement of the pistons. If the values are instead controlled independently of the pistons - called variable valve actuation - the valves can be more finely tuned to improve performance. In particular this facilitates the use of homogenous charge compression ignition (HCCI), which could improve the efficiency of gasoline engines by 15 to 20 percent. With variable valve actuation it is possible to "reinduct," or reroute a portion of the exhaust back into the cylinders to improve combustion efficiency and reduce emissions. One can also vary the amount of compression in the cylinders of both conventional and HCCI engines and adjust the mixing and combustion timing, which again allows more efficient combustion. But in order for the system to work, it is critical to track changing engine performance from one combustion cycle to the next. Researchers at Purdue have now created the first computational model to do this. [P][C][E][M]
Sugar-fuelled propulsion For hydrogen propulsion, an alternative to storing gaseous hydrogen would be to store carbohydrate and convert this to hydrogen as required. US researchers have developed a process involving 13 enzymes that completely converts polysaccharides and water into hydrogen. They say that the energy conversion efficiency from the sugar-hydrogen-fuel cell system is extremely high, and more than three times higher than converting sugar to bioethanol and using the bioethanol in an internal combustion engine. [P][M]
Aluminium-hydrogen-fuel system Research at Purdue has found that a mixture of aluminium and gallium produces hydrogen from water. Pure aluminium does not readily react with water because it forms a tough skin of alumina that prevents water reaching the aluminium. Gallium hinders the formation of the skin. The researchers believe the technology could be viable for hydrogen-powered vehicles. The alumina-gallium waste product would be recycled back into new fuel using fused salt electrolysis with electricity generated by a nuclear power plant or windmills. [P][M]
Biofuel and biochar from wood A team at the University of Georgia has developed a new biofuel derived from wood chips. Unlike previous fuels derived from wood, the new fuel can be blended with biodiesel and petroleum diesel to power conventional engines. The fuel is made by pyrolysis. The wood chips are heated at a high temperature but without oxygen. Up to a third of the dry weight becomes charcoal and the rest becomes a gas. Most of the gas is condensed into a liquid bio-oil. The charcoal can be returned to the soil as biochar, thereby sequestering carbon and improving the soil. [P][E][M]
Future biofuel technology Biofuel companies face many uncertainties - feedstock costs, government regulations, new conversion technologies, and how much oil prices rise. Feedstock currently accounts for 50 to 80 percent of biofuel production costs and growth in demand has pushed up prices, making biofuel producers strongly dependent on government subsidies. When lignocellulosic conversion technology becomes viable, which could be as early as 2010, it will greatly reduce feedstock costs and carbon emissions. This could change the relative advantage of different geographical areas for growing biofuel crops. In China, cellulosic technology could lower bioethanol production costs to as little as $0.60 a gallon, from about $1.80 currently, making Chinese bioethanol one of the world’s cheapest biofuels. New technology could also make it practical to use biobutanol, a molecule that outperforms ethanol as a premium gasoline replacement. Biodiesel could in time be produced from jatropha, a crop that provides cheap vegetable oil and can be cultivated on marginal land. Biomass-to-liquid (BTL) technology could eventually make it possible to produce high-quality synthetic diesel and gasoline. [P][E][M][T][W]
Extracting dam methane Scientists in Brazil have claimed that a major source of greenhouse gas emissions could be curbed by capturing methane given off by large hydro-electric dams and using it to power additional electricity generation. Methane is produced mainly by bacteria that break down organic matter where there is little or no oxygen, for example at the bottom of lakes and reservoirs. Since intake pipes for hydroelectric turbines tend to be placed quite deep, methane-rich water is suddenly transferred from conditions of high-pressure to the open air, releasing the methane. The researchers are developing technology to instead extract the methane from the deep water and to feed the turbines with surface water that has no methane. They estimate that worldwide the large dams could be responsible for annual emissions equivalent to some 800 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. In comparison, the total greenhouse gas emissions from the UK in 2006 were around 660 million tonnes. [P][E]
Thermoacoustic generation University of Utah physicists have developed small thermoacoustic devices that turn heat into sound and then into electricity. The technology holds promise for exploiting waste heat and solar energy and also for cooling computers and radars. The engines have a conversion efficiency of 40 percent according to an article in the New Scientist. Also using thermoacoustic conversion, UK and US scientists are developing a combined wood-powered stove for cooking, refrigeration and electricity supply (SCORE) for use in the third world. [P][M]
Concentrator solar power Scientists from Spectrolab have developed a concentrator multijunction solar cell with more that 40 percent efficiency, and believe that 45 to 50 percent efficiency is achievable in the near future. Concentrator multijunction solar cells use high intensities of sunlight concentrated by lenses or mirrors. They contain three different semiconductor materials whose bandgaps can efficiently convert light from different parts of the spectrum, allowing the cell to exploit the broad range of wavelengths in sunlight much more efficiently than is possible with single-junction silicon solar cells. Interest in concentrator-based solar power has increased recently because of advances in focusing systems. The challenge is to engineer an easy-to-manufacture system that accurately tracks the movement of the sun to keep the light focused on the small solar cell, and that can accommodate the high heat caused by concentrating the sun's power by 500 to 700 times. [P][J][M][O][W]
Superconducting power line Plans are underway to install a superconducting power line under midtown New York in a step towards building a more resilient power grid capable of withstanding lightning strikes and terrorist attacks. The power line, developed by American Superconductor, consist of several individual cables made of high temperature superconductor wrapped around a central tube filled with liquid nitrogen. [P][D][M]
Improved lithium batteries Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory have developed a new type of electrode that could greatly improve the capacity of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries used in laptops and mobile phones. The new electrode materials yielded charge-storage capacities greater than 250 mAh/g, which is more than twice the capacity of materials in conventional rechargeable lithium batteries. [P][I][M][N][V] |
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| [M] Materials, structures and surfaces | |
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Hydrogen storage material Scientists from RAL and Birmingham and Oxford Universities report that they have developed a form of lithium hydride (specifically Li4BN3H10) that makes it practical to store enough hydrogen on-board fuel-cell-powered cars to cover over 300 miles between refuelling. The team has tested thousands of compounds to find the right material, which has to be light, cheap, readily available and able to absorb and desorb hydrogen rapidly and safely at typical fuel cell operating temperatures. [M][P]
Fire safe plastic Scientists from the University of Massachusetts have created a synthetic polymer that does not burn. It uses bishydroxydeoxybenzoin or BHDB as a building block, which releases water vapour when it breaks down in a fire, rather than hazardous gasses. The polymer is clear, flexible, durable and much cheaper to make than the high-temperature and heat-resistant plastics in current use, which tend to be brittle and dark in colour. It also avoids the need to use halogenated fire-retardant additives, which are known to be environmentally hazardous and which have to be added to many existing plastics before they can be used in bus seats, airplanes, textiles and household items. [M][A][E][H][P]
Recycling tyres Old tyres are piling up in landfills around the world because they are so difficult to dispose of, or reuse. The rubber used is vulcanised to improve its overall strength and durability. Unfortunately, vulcanised rubber does not melt, and is therefore difficult to reform and reuse. Research at Swansea University has shown that spinning ground-up tyres, called rubber crumb, inside a chamber filled with ionised oxygen gas plasma could provide a solution. It makes the surface of the crumb much better at sticking onto new rubber. The treated rubber particles can then be added to fresh non-vulcanised rubber to make new tyres. Laboratory tests show that tyre rubber recycled in this way has similar tensile strength and other mechanical properties to completely new material. [M][E]
Bulletproof polythene A Dutch company is selling a super-tough form of polyethylene fibre that, weight for weight, is 15 times stronger than steel and 40 percent stronger than Kevlar. American Body Armor of Los Angeles is using the new fibre to make flexible, concealable vests just 5 millimetres thick for US police forces. [M][D]
Nanotube textile A lightweight material made from carbon nanotubes that is stronger than steel and conducts almost as well as aluminium, has been unveiled by a US start-up company called Nanocomp. The material could lead to lighter bulletproof clothing, wiring for aircraft and more efficient power-transmission lines, the company claims. [M][A][D][N][P]
High temperature nanoglue A powerful new "nano-glue" that uses molecular chains to bond surfaces together and that works even at very high temperatures, has been developed by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic. The nano-glue bonds surfaces tightly together despite being just one nanometre thick and it becomes stronger as surrounding temperatures increase. Possible applications including bonding microchips and coatings for components in turbines and jet engines to protect them from high-heat environments. [M][A][J][N][P][W]
Nanoscale high temperature superconductivity Using a scanning tunnelling microscope adapted to map superconducting properties on the scale of single atoms, researchers at Princeton have discovered that traces of superconductivity in the form of Cooper pairs remain present inside high temperature superconductors even when they are warmed up far above the critical temperature at which they lose their superconductivity. The regions are only a few nanometres wide, but they appear in some materials at up to 50 degrees above the critical temperature. This shows that electron pairing occurs over a wide range of temperatures and is a function of highly localized chemistry in the sample. The researchers hope to shed light on what controls the pairing temperature on the atomic scale in ceramic superconductors, and also to determine what limits the Cooper pairs' ability to superconduct. [M][N][S]
Polymer quasicrystals Quasicrystals are aperiodic structures that produce Bragg diffraction like crystals do, but do not have a regular repeating structure. They have appeared in metals and a few other materials, but now researchers at the Universities of Kyoto and Nagoya report that quasicrystals can also form in polymers. The spacing between the polymer structures is 100 times larger than between atoms and this means that these new structures could be used as photonic crystals. Quasicrystals fall in the middle ground between order and disorder and none of them are fully understood. Whereas the Schrödinger operator can be used to find out whether a crystalline material will be a conductor or an insulator, this does not work for quasicrystals. The large spacing in a polymer quasicrystals adds further theoretical challenges in explaining the atomic arrangement. [M][O]
Polariton superfluid Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have created an exotic form of matter that can be described as a polariton superfluid and combines the characteristics of lasers with those of electrical conductors. They captured and slowed down the polaritons using specially designed optical structures with nanometre-thick layers that allow the polaritons to move freely inside the solid. Whereas superfluids are usually only stable at very low temperatures, the polariton superfluid exists at much higher temperatures and may soon be demonstrated at room temperature, according to the researchers. It could provide new ways for controlled transfer of optical signals through solid matter. The superfluid propagation leads to a pure light beam similar to that from a laser but much more energy efficient. [M][F][N][O] |
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| [E] Environment, transport and marine | |
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International declaration on climate change The heads of the national science academies from the G8 countries and from Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa, have signed a joint statement on the need for nations to tackle climate change by working together and finding common strategic objectives. The declaration recommends jointly setting standards and promoting economic instruments for efficiency. It says nations should commit to promoting energy efficiency for buildings, devices, motors, transportation systems and in their energy sector. Nations should also promote understanding of climate and energy issues and encourage necessary behavioural changes within their societies. They should define and implement measures to reduce global deforestation and strengthen economic and technological exchanges with developing countries so that these can leapfrog to cleaner and more efficient modern technologies. They should also invest strongly in science and technology related to energy efficiency, zero-carbon energy resources and carbon-removing technologies. [E][A][D][K][M][P][R][W][X]
Climate change and city temperatures From analysing weather patterns from the recent past and testing how well different commonly-used climate models replicate these, NASA researchers have made a best estimate of future US climate. They predict that average summer temperatures in the eastern US could soar by 5.5 degrees C by 2080 if human emissions continue to grow at their current rate. In very dry seasons, daily high temperatures in July and August could average between 38 and 43 degrees C in cities such as Chicago, Washington, and Atlanta. Body temperatures above 40 degrees C are life threatening to humans. [E][M]
Preventing cities overheating The danger of cities overheating due to climate change could be mitigated by creating more vegetation in urban areas, according to researchers at Manchester University. They say that infrared maps of cities show that woodland areas in hot weather can be 12 degrees cooler than city centres with no trees. They estimate that the average temperature in cities could be reduced by up to 4 degrees C by adding just 10 percent more green cover. This does not necessarily require creating more parks and green spaces. It might also be provided by using green roofing with roll-out strips of soil planted with succulents, commonly used in Germany. [E][M][P]
Cities and climate change Worldwide, buildings contribute roughly one third of all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and even more in cities. In New York, buildings contribute 79 percent of the city's 60 million tonnes per annum of GHG emissions. Five international economic institutions and four multinational energy services companies have teamed up to retrofit existing buildings in 16 of some of the world's biggest cities, including New York, London, Johannesburg, Karachi, Mexico City, Mumbai and Tokyo. The banks will loan the money and the power companies to provide the retrofits and guarantees of energy savings. New and existing homes hold the greatest and cheapest hope for gains. According to the Clinton Climate Initiative, installing thick insulation and double-paned windows as well as using energy-efficient electrical appliances can cut their emissions by as much as 50 percent. [E][M][P][T][W]
Sewage and energy Treating sewage takes a lot of energy. In the UK, the water industry is the fourth most energy intensive sector and further tightening of water quality standards could drive energy costs still higher. A note by the UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology evaluates options for sewage treatment to improve both energy conservation and renewable generation. Conservation requires more efficient water use by consumers and more efficient energy use by the water industry. Options for energy generation from sewage treatment include well-established technologies such as biogas, and more novel technologies such as gasification. The reports says that many of these options need more investment and research. In 2004-05 the water industry in the UK spent a mere 0.3 percent of its turnover on R&D. [E][M][P][W]
Hurricanes and El Niño The 2007 Atlantic hurricane season is predicted to be more active than normal owing to warmer ocean waters. However, analysis of sediment records going back 5000 years by researchers at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute has shown little evidence of any past correlation between ocean temperature and hurricane activity. What it has confirmed is the role of El Niño in reducing hurricane activity. El Niño causes warm waters to move eastward in the Pacific. This disrupts atmospheric circulation throughout the tropics and can break up storm systems before they strengthen in the Atlantic. The researchers found that hurricanes were almost non-existent during periods of increased El Niño-related warming in the eastern Pacific, one of which lasted from 3600 to 2500 years ago. [E][P]
Carbon sink weakening The oceans and the land biosphere together absorb about half of human-produced carbon dioxide. The most important ocean sink is the Southern Ocean, which accounts for about 15 percent of the total absorption. Analysis of data from 11 stations in the Southern Ocean and 40 stations around the world from 1981 to 2004 has now revealed that the ability of the Southern Ocean to absorb carbon dioxide has dropped by around 15 percent per decade over the past 25 years. The drop is believed to be caused by climate change making the ocean windier and churning up its surface waters. This churning brings carbon-laden colder waters up to the surface, where they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The churning also prevents carbon captured from the atmosphere by photosynthesis from sinking into the deep ocean where it can be permanently stored. The faster acidification of the ocean surface waters is also affecting the health of the biosphere. These effects are all included in climate models, but were not expected to become significant until 2025 at the earliest. [E][C][D][P][R][X]
Ocean productivity Past research has shown that the open ocean is far more biologically productive than can be explained by normal levels of nutrients in surface water. This productivity is important as a mechanism of carbon capture. Researchers at Wood Hole have now found that huge mid-ocean plankton blooms result from certain types of eddies that bring up nutrients from the deep. This enables phytoplankton to grow to levels 10,000 to 100,000 times normal. The largest eddies can contain up to 5,000 cubic kilometres of water and can last for months to a year. They are formed by differences in ocean temperature and salinity that give water different densities, analogous to high and low-pressure systems in the atmosphere. Winds can act to dampen or amplify the effects. [E][R] |
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| [R] Remote sensing and sensor systems | |
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Surveillance and privacy An AAAS report says that pervasive surveillance technology raises issues about whether the idea of privacy needs to be redefined and whether science and technology can serve both privacy and security interests. [R][C][D][H][I][K][T][X]
Monitoring volcanoes by InSAR Using interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) from satellites, researchers have been able to obtain images of the ground deformation associated with volcanic activity on Mauna Loa, the largest volcano on Earth and one of the most active. Over several years, they tracked distinct patterns of magma activity associated with rift zones, long narrow fractures in the earth’s crust from which lava flows out. With this new technique, the locations of volcanic activity can be forecasted more precisely, providing critical information to improve warning and hazard assessment. [R][D][E]
Radar hurricane forecasting Despite recent advances in understanding the internal workings of hurricanes, forecasting their intensity is still a major challenge. A new technique will be tested this summer that provides a detailed 3-D view of an approaching hurricane every six minutes and shows whether the storm is gathering strength as it nears land. The technique, developed by researchers at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), relies on an existing network of Doppler radars established in the 1980s and 1990s. About 20 of these radars are scattered along the Gulf and Atlantic coastlines from Texas to Maine. The researchers have developed a series of mathematical formulas that combine data from a single radar near the centre of a landfalling storm with general knowledge of Atlantic hurricane structure in order to map the approaching system's winds in three dimensions. The technique also infers the barometric pressure in the eye of the hurricane, a very reliable index of its strength. Testing the technique on past data has shown it can capture sudden intensity changes in potentially dangerous hurricanes. [R][C][D][E]
Automatic surveillance A laser-based surveillance system that can automatically detect millimetre-scale changes to a scene has been developed by researchers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The system rapidly scans an area with a laser to pinpoint any changes. Rather than detecting intruders or monitoring people directly, it keeps track of static objects in a scene by attaching tags to important items that reflect laser light. If one of the tags is moved, or disturbed even slightly, this is revealed by the change in laser reflection. The researchers suggest that the system could be suitable for high security situations where even CCTV is a security risk. Also, unlike CCTV, it does not require constant human supervision. [R][D][K][O][U]
Mapping dark objects Astronomers have discovered more than a dozen gravitational lensing events that could have been caused by dark objects lying in the Milky Way's galactic halo. But these could also be caused just by stars in other galaxies. Now astronomers have for the first time been able to effectively triangulate the distance of a lensing event by observing it from the ground and from space. Over the summer of 2005, they watched one such event from two locations: Earth, and NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which is orbiting the Sun some 25 million miles away. From their observations, they have calculated that there is a 95 percent probability that the lens is in the galactic halo and is a 10 solar-mass black-hole binary. [R][A][F]
Elastography A new non-invasive elastography technique that measures "muscle noise" could provide a way of monitoring neuromuscular disease and checking on sports and other muscle injuries. The method gives quantitative information about the muscle's mechanical properties and can be used alone or to complement X-rays and MRI imaging. [R][H][S]
Seeing inside biological cells Fluorescent imaging of single molecules in live cells is now revealing details of gene expression, structural proteins, and molecular motors. Single-molecule methods are well-established for in vitro measurements. But now scientists are using these tools to probe live cells, where they can see biological molecules in context and gain a new view of the workings of cells. Being able to study single molecules is essential for studying many key cellular processes, such as gene expression. Any cell contains at most two copies of the genetic DNA, depending on the stage of the cell cycle. The number of copies of any particular messenger RNA is also small. And proteins are sometimes produced as a single copy. In the future, super-resolution methods could advance the capabilities of single-molecule imaging even further. [R][B][G][H][N][O][R][S][T]
DNA-based sensing Researchers at Harvard and Princeton have designed a new type of DNA-based sensing and have demonstrated that it works in human kidney cells in culture. The system runs on a process called RNA interference (RNAi) in which small molecules of RNA prevent a gene from producing protein. The researchers engineered a target gene to be sensitive to several different short interfering RNA (siRNAs) molecules of their own design. In the simplest case, they introduced a single siRNA molecule to switch off a target gene that encoded a fluorescent protein. In more complex cases, a pair of siRNAs or either of two siRNAs switched off another target gene, which in turn switched off a gene for a fluorescent protein. The goal is to inject human cells with DNA that can determine whether a cell is cancerous or otherwise diseased, based solely on the mix of molecules inside the cell. Eventually, the devices, constructed entirely of DNA, RNA, and proteins, could be produced by cells themselves. [R][C][G][H][O][S] |
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| [S] Sensor devices | |
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Biosensing explosives A biosensor that sniffs out explosive has been developed at Temple University. The researchers genetically engineered a yeast strain to have olfactory signalling machinery from rats, and genetically linked it to the expression of green fluorescent protein. Into these yeast cells, they cloned individual rat olfactory receptors. When an olfactory receptor "smells" the odour of DNT, an ingredient in the explosive TNT, the biosensor turns fluorescent green. The researchers envision that the biosensor will be incorporated into a handheld device or a remote sensor that can be left at a location and monitored remotely. [S][D][G][R]
Nanopore mass spectrometer A single nanopore in a thin membrane - resembling a pore in the wall of a living cell - can be used to accurately detect and sort different-sized polymer chains, according to researchers in the US and Brazil. The molecules are forced one-at-a-time through the nanopore, which is only 1.5 to 12 nm in diameter, by an applied electric current. As the molecules pass through the pore channel, the current flow is reduced in proportion to the size of each individual chain, allowing an easy measure of its mass. This technique could offer a huge advantage for measuring and identifying unknown molecules compared with using traditional mass spectrometry, which involves ionizing and disintegrating large numbers of the target molecule, then analyzing the masses of the resulting fragments to produce a "molecular fingerprint" for the original sample. The pore-based system is non-destructive and can, in principle, measure one molecule at a time in a space small enough to fit on a single microchip-based device the size of a cell phone. [S][D][E][G][H][J][N]
Origin of 1/f noise 1/f noise appears almost everywhere, from electronic devices, heart beats and fatigue in materials to road traffic, DNA sequences and the distribution of stars in galaxies. Finding the common origin of 1/f noise in its many forms has been a long standing challenge. Researchers from the US, Norway and Russia have now shown that 1/f noise in doped semiconductors originates from the random distribution of the doping impurities and the mutual interaction of the many electrons surrounding them. These two ingredients of randomness and interaction trap electrons in a Coulomb glass state in which electrons move by hopping from one random location to another. The researchers say that it is this hopping that generates the 1/f noise. To confirm this they showed with large-scale computer simulations that suppressing the interactions removed the Coulomb glass behaviour and the 1/f noise. As well as being relevant to improving 1/f noise in sensors and other electronics, the findings suggest that 1/f noise may be a generic property of all random interacting systems. [S][B][F][G][I][J][M][N][X]
Quantum dot thermal imager Researchers at Northwestern University have made a quantum dot mid-infrared photodetector that operates at room temperature. The device is based on a hybrid indium arsenide quantum dot and an indium gallium arsenide quantum well structure grown on an indium phosphide substrate.
The researchers used this quantum dot infrared photodetectors (QDIP) to build an infrared focal plane array (FPA) and demonstrated thermal imaging at temperatures up to 200 degrees K. QDIP imaging has potential applications in medical and biological imaging, environmental and chemical monitoring, night vision and infrared imaging from space. [S][D][E][H][J][N][O][R]
On-chip atomic spectrometer Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, have performed atomic spectroscopy using integrated optics on a chip. Potential applications for this technology include frequency stabilization for lasers, gas detection sensors, and quantum information processing. The devices uses a hollow-core optical waveguides based on antiresonant reflecting optical waveguide (ARROW) principles. These waveguides are integrated into chips using standard silicon fabrication technology. To perform atomic spectroscopy, the researchers incorporated rubidium reservoirs into a chip, connecting the reservoirs to the hollow-core waveguides so that the optical beam path was filled with rubidium atoms. In addition to its use in laser frequency stabilization, rubidium vapour is widely used in quantum optics experiments. [S][J][O]
Polariton-based laser cooling Laser cooling is routinely used to create ultracold clouds of atoms. It has now been proposed that laser cooling could also work for semiconductors and could lead to more efficient ways of cooling infrared detectors and other electronic devices. The idea is to use surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) in a metal surface adjacent to the semiconductor. If the metal and semiconductor surfaces are separated by a very narrow gap, SPPs could be created within the semiconductor material by the recombination of electron-hole pairs (excitons) excited by the laser illumination. Nearly all these SPPs would exit the semiconductor and deposit 99.9 percent of their energy in the metal – thus cooling the semiconductor. [S][J][M][N][O] |
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| [O] Optoelectronics, optics and lasers | |
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Laser surface texturing Researchers at the University of Virginia report they have developed an easily automated technique for laser-texturing germanium. They say that by increasing light absorption and reducing reflection, the texturing could lead to a new breed of high-performance photodetectors, solar cells and electron emitters. Researchers at the University of Surrey have reported a new laser surface texturing technique for thin film silicon that has produced organic/inorganic hybrid solar cells with the highest reported efficiency for nanocrystalline silicon and the type of polymer used (MEH-PPV). [O][M][N][O][P][S][W]
Magnifying superlens A magnifying superlens has been demonstrated by researchers at the University of Maryland. It uses alternating layers of negative- and positive-index-of-refraction metamaterials and succeeds in magnifying the object while resolving details as tiny as 70 nm. [O][M][N][S]
Natural negative refraction material Physicists in Germany claim to have found the first naturally occurring material that has a negative refractive index. The material is a metallic ferromagnet and very different from all other negative-refractive-index materials known to date, which have had structures that have been artificially engineered in the laboratory. It exhibits negative refraction up to gigahertz frequencies and could be used in novel devices such as superlenses. [O][M][S]
Opto-acoustic soliton A scheme for using sound waves to help slow light in an optical fibre has been proposed by researchers in Israel. It uses a Bragg grating fibre - a fibre whose refractive index varies periodically along its length so that light reflects multiply all along the fibre. If the light in the fibre is intense and the fibre material has a nonlinear refractive index, the net effect of light wavelets propagating in the forward and backward direction can be a light pulse travelling much slower than the speed of light. A sound wave in the fibre can slightly alter the material’s index of refraction and this in turn can shorten and slow the light pulse, creating an opto-acoustic soliton. The scheme, if it can be fully demonstrated, could provide ultrasensitive optical switches or the means of transporting bits in future all-optical computers. [O][C][S]
Nanowire UV LEDs US researchers have developed a technique to create tiny, highly efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs) from nanowires. Each LED consists of an n-type gallium nitride (GaN) nanowire placed on the surface of a p-type GaN thin film. The researchers tested more than 40 LEDs and all showed excellent thermal and operational stability and very similar emission properties, with a peak wavelength of 365 nm. Ultraviolet LEDs are of particular interest for data-storage and biological sensing devices. The LEDs were made using standard batch fabrication techniques and the nanowires were aligned using an electric field, avoiding having to place each nanowire separately. The researchers say their fabrication method could be used to make other nanowire structures and for applications requiring a large area of nanoscale light sources. [O][J][N][R][S][V]
Multicolour silicon LED Researchers have developed a silicon LED that can quickly switch between producing red and blue light. The LED is made from a layer of silicon and a layer of insulating silicon dioxide. The silicon dioxide is implanted with europium, which can exist in two different chemical states, each producing one of the two colours. The team is hoping that by also implanting green-emitting terbium they can make an LED that emits all three primary colours. This could be used in high resolution displays. [O][J][V]
Microcavity plasma lighting Panels of microcavity plasma lamps are a contender for future more efficient lighting. Like fluorescent lights, they use glow-discharges in which atoms of a gas are excited by electrons and radiate light. Unlike fluorescent lights, however, they produce the plasma in microscopic pockets and require no ballast, reflector or heavy metal housing. The panels are lighter, brighter and more efficient than incandescent lights and are expected, with further engineering, to approach or surpass the efficiency of fluorescent lighting. [O][V][T] |
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| [I] IT, communications, networking and secure systems | |
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Network coding On the Internet and other shared networks, information is relayed by routers that sit at the intersections of the network. Routers examine the headers on packets of data and forward each packet toward its destination. However, router-based networks suffer from bottlenecks in which packets pile up on critical paths. It was shown in 2000 that this problem can be overcome by using network coding in place of routing. The core notion of network coding is to allow mixing of data at intermediate network nodes, combining signals and reducing the data on critical paths. A receiver gets by other routes part of the data it needs to deduce the message. So far much of the research into implementing network coding has focused on multicast networks, where all receivers need to get the same information. Internet games, webcasts and electronic distribution of new software can all use multicast networks. Network coding is also of particular interest for military communications where battlefield networks have to be robust and created ad hoc, and where maximising network capacity is important. [I][C][D][R][T]
Quantum communications Using ultrafast superconducting single-photon detectors developed at the Moscow State Pedagogical University, a team from NIST, NTT and Stanford University has demonstrated quantum key distribution over a fibre-optic link of 200 km - a new record distance. The experiment used transmission rates of 10 billion light pulses per second and exploited mostly standard components. The researchers say it offers an approach for making practical inter-city terrestrial quantum communications networks as well as long-range wireless systems using communication satellites and free space communications. [I][O][S]
Satellite security comms A UK-German partnership is introducing a satellite system to link security alarms and video surveillance to security centres. It can be interfaced with standard video surveillance systems, is independent of terrestrial infrastructure and is designed to provide cost effective primary or redundant connectivity for security systems where terrestrial networks are either not available or are unreliable. Bi-directional audio and internet-like data channels provided emergency voice communications and remote control of devices such as cameras. The system uses Eutelsat Eurobird-3 satellite. [I][A][D][E][R]
Emergency response system ESA is supporting an emergency response system designed to help European governments coordinate their actions during emergencies, such as epidemics or terrorist attacks. By identifying and mapping medical emergencies and also other occurrences such as hurricanes, tsunamis and earthquakes, the service will communicate vital information to agencies so that they can react to disasters more quickly and efficiently. Called the Health Early Warning System (HEWS), it will establish a satellite communication network to survey and monitor risk indicators. It will collect, analyse and distribute data to emergency teams in the field. Being satellite-based, it will not be vulnerable if disasters disrupt or destroy local infrastructure. [I][A][D][E][H][K][R][X]
P2P DDoS attack According to internet security experts, as peer-to-peer (P2P) networks grow in size they could potentially pose a far more serious threat than botnets for distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks. All file-sharing systems have a database to locate where the files are. Putting a bogus entry saying that a very popular file is located at the target address can cause tens of thousands of computers to start contacting the target requesting the file. To mount the attack, it is not necessary to subvert any of these computers, as in a botnet. A P2P DDoS attack is also harder to defend against and track down than a traditional botnet-based DDoS attack. [I][K] |
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| [K] Knowledge, information and technology management | |
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Social network platforms Facebook, the second most popular social networking site in the world after MySpace, has created its own web programming language, called Facebook Markup, to let outside developers build features within the site. It has signed up 65 partners, including Microsoft and Amazon, to build web applications that plug into Facebook. Ultimately, Facebook hopes to transform itself from a straightforward website into a "platform", or a foundation, on which other applications can run. [K][C]
Decision making People who do well on a series of decision-making tasks involving hypothetical situations tend to have more positive decision outcomes in their lives, according to a study by decision scientists at Carnegie Mellon University and the RAND Corp. The results suggest that it may be possible to improve the quality of people’s lives by teaching them better decision-making skills, which are separate from intelligence. [K][B]
EU Joint Technology Initiatives The European Commission is setting up a new approach to funding R&D, called Joint Technology Initiatives (JTI). Each JTI will be managed by a Joint Undertaking, funded by both industry and the public sector (European and/or national). The first two JTIs, worth approximately €5 billion, are on embedded computing systems and on innovative medicines. Other JTIs may be in nano-electronics, clean skies (greening of aeronautics), hydrogen and fuel cells, and global monitoring for environment and security. [K][A][C][D][E][G][H][J][M][N][P][R][T][U][V]
International research cooperation and innovation The heads of the national science academies from the G8 countries and from Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa have signed a joint statement on the need to encourage long-term international research agendas to promote innovation and the sharing of knowledge, particularly in priority areas such as sustainable energy, climate change adaptation and mitigation, natural hazards, biodiversity, water, and infectious diseases. They should facilitate commercialisation and entrepreneurship, work with developing countries to build systems of science, technology and innovation for economic and social development and to promote the education and training of their future leaders particularly in science, engineering, technology, and medicine. They should promote global knowledge policies that deal with generation, transmission, use and protection, rather than focusing on just the latter. This means encouraging global efforts to simplify and enforce intellectual property while making sure that a proper balance is maintained between thoroughly examined formal intellectual property rights and free access to knowledge and information. [K][E][H][P][R][X] |
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| [C] Computing, supercomputing, modelling and simulation | |
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Quantum computing in diamond Physicists at Harvard have found that the nuclear spins of individual carbon-13 atoms in a diamond lattice can be manipulated with extraordinary precision to create stable quantum mechanical memory and a small quantum processor operating at room temperature. Nuclear spins are highly isolated from disturbances that would destroy quantum coherence, but this isolation also makes it harder to manipulate them externally. The researchers found that they could do this via the spin of an electron on a nearby nitrogen vacancy centre - a stable defect in a diamond lattice where nitrogen replaces an atom of carbon and develops an electronic spin in its ground state. Exciting this electron with laser light causes its spin to act as a very sensitive magnetic probe with extraordinary spatial resolution. By using the nitrogen centre as an intermediary, a single carbon-13 atom's nuclear spin can be cooled to near absolute zero, creating in the process a single, isolated quantum bit (qubit) with a coherence time that approaches seconds. The researchers were able to manipulate coupling between individual nuclear spins, thus demonstrating a way to increase the number of qubits working in the quantum register. [C][M][N][O][S]
LHC grid The Large Hadron Collider will rely in large part on a worldwide, high-speed network that will allow scientists to harness the power of 100,000 computers to process an expected 15 petabytes of data per year generated by the LHC experiments. The LHC grid is organized in a three-tiered hierarchy, with CERN serving as the tier 0 "fountainhead" from which data subsets will be dispersed via a 10 Gbps backbone to 11 tier 1 data centres in Europe, North America and Asia. These are linked to tier 2 data centres, located mostly at more than 250 universities around the globe, where 7,000 scientists will analyze subsets of the data. The middleware, which optimizes use of the grid, includes such elements as resource brokers that determine at any given point in time which data centres have the necessary capacity for a task submitted by an authorized physicist and determine where the task will be handled. The middleware also implements authentication and authorization for users. [C][F][I][K]
Simulating colloids Since the invention of ink over 3,000 years ago, people have exploited the unique properties of colloids, in which particles of one substance are suspended in another. However, describing colloids scientifically has proved very difficult because they contain an overwhelmingly large number of charged particles that attract and repel each other in very unusual ways and that commonly have very high static electric charges. Researchers at Princeton have now solved this problem by realizing that they could accurately represent the system with just one to four colloidal particles and their oppositely charged counterparts, called counterions. The results allows the computation of a complete phase diagram that is correct even when the particles have very high electric charges. The technique can be applied to a variety of fundamental and applied topics in physics, chemistry and biology: for example, to improve photonic crystals, to make more stable colloidal drugs, in astrophysics to understand phase transitions of dense plasmas, or in biology to explore the associations between proteins and DNA. [C][A][F][G][H][M][N][O][X]
Operational training simulators NATO fighter pilots can now learn to fly together even when they are stationed thousands of miles apart. A low-cost, networked flight simulator developed by QinetiQ and Boeing, lets pilots learn each other's combat tactics remotely, and could prevent friendly fire incidents during coalition missions. At present, coalition pilots rarely train with one another owing to the huge expense of bringing aircraft and support staff together. The high cost of full-motion flight simulators also means that there are far too few to create virtual squadrons through remote link-up. Consequently, the first time many NATO pilots fly together is on a mission. The new simulator is very much cheaper because it is focused on battle training rather than full flight training. [C][D][I][K][V][W] |
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| [W] Whole life engineering, manufacture and testing | |
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Coding tool for children A free programming tool that allows anyone to create their own animated stories, video games and interactive artworks has been developed at the MIT Media Lab. The tool named Scratch is aimed primarily at children and requires no prior knowledge of complex computer languages. Instead, it uses a simple graphical interface that allows programs to be assembled like building blocks and enables people to blend images, sound and video. Objects and characters, chosen from a menu and created in a paint editor or simply cut and pasted off the web, are animated by snapping together different "action" blocks into stacks. [W][C][K][V]
Web design Hype about Web 2.0 is making web firms neglect the basics of good design, according to the web usability guru Jakob Nielsen, and the rush to make webpages more dynamic often means that users are badly served. He said that sites peppered with personalisation tools were in danger of resembling the "glossy but useless" sites at the height of the dotcom boom. [W][K]
Software as a service Traditionally, companies buy software and then install and maintain these applications on their own machines. That model is giving way to a new software-as-a-service model where companies will buy subscriptions and access services over the Internet from software developers that host their own applications. New software design and delivery models are allowing many more instances of an application to run at once in a common environment. So, providers can now share one application cost effectively across hundreds of companies. Bandwidth costs continue to drop, making it affordable for companies to purchase the level of connectivity that allows online applications to perform gracefully. It is projected that more than 10 percent of the market for enterprise software may migrate to a pure software-as-a-service model by 2009. For software developers this radically changes the revenue model, their relationship with customers, and the nature and scale of software R&D. [W][C][I][K][T][X]
Engineering mile-high skyscrapers The strongest concrete available in the 1950s could withstand compression on the order of 21 megapascals (MPa). Today it can exceed 130 MPa, and adding smart fibres and carbon nanotubes could increase this beyond 200 MPa in the future. It could also optimise concrete for characteristics such as fire and blast resistance, vibration damping, and durability. Structurally this will make it possible to build skyscrapers a mile high. However, many other new technologies and systems will also be important. Efficient transport requires radically improved elevator technology. New safety and escape systems are needed for mile-high occupants. An integrated approach to the building envelope and to the mechanical and electrical systems is important to manage and reduce energy consumption. Built-in energy generation using windmills and photovoltaics could make skyscrapers independent of the grid. [W][D][E][K][M][P][T][X]
Designing megacities By 2015, according to the UN, the world will have 22 megacities. The June issue of IEEE Spectrum contains a special report on how 5 megacities are engineering innovative approaches to some of the biggest problems: pollution, transportation, energy, natural disaster, and crime. Shanghai is developing on its offshore island of Dongtan what it hopes will be the world's first truly sustainable “eco-city.” São Paulo, with 18.3 million people scattered throughout its metropolitan area, has a bus-based transit system that is considered to be the most complex in the world and uses a host of advanced technologies to coordinate its 26,000 vehicles for maximum efficiency. Mumbai (formerly Bombay) illustrates the huge challenge of providing enough electricity for a rapidly growing megacity. Tokyo has introduced a seismic disaster reaction system to exploit the brief warning - just a minute or so - of a major earthquake that can be provided by the earthquake early-warning network that has been installed throughout Japan. New York, through a series of innovations including most recently the Computerized Crime Center, has dramatically reduced its violent-crime rates over the past 15 years. [W][C][D][E][I][K][P][R][T][X] |
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| [X] Systems, complexity and risk | |
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Sustainability of cities To feed, clothe, power, and build today's major metropolises takes the products of thousands of square kilometres outside the city limits. And thousands more are needed to absorb the waste. This is called a city's ecological footprint. An accurate footprint of most cities is hard to come by. London is the largest urban area to have had its ecological footprint measured systematically. In standard units called global hectares that allow for variations in land around the world, London's footprint in 2002 was 49 million global hectares - 293 times its geographical area. On average, Londoners took up 6.6 global hectares each, half the footprint of the average American but three times the world average of 2.2 global hectares per person. In general, cities are ecologically efficient and in that sense urbanisation is good for sustainability. But the greater affluence of many cities increases their ecological footprint through higher levels of consumption. [X][D][E][T][W]
Climate tipping point The Earth's climate may be closer than previously thought to critical tipping points at which dangerous positive feedback mechanisms will set in, according to research at NASA and Columbia University. The researchers used climate models to simulate global warming, satellite data to verify ongoing changes, and paleoclimate data on earlier warm periods in Earth’s history to estimate climate impacts as a function of global temperature. They concluded that the threshold for dangerous climate change could be substantially lower than 450 ppm. The recent IPCC summaries entertained "scenarios" ranging from 450 ppm up to 650 ppm, and the Stern review suggested a stabilisation goal of between 450 and 550 ppm by 2050. However, the new research indicates that this could be much too lenient. Levels have increase from 280 ppm before the Industrial Revolution to over 380 ppm now. The rate at which carbon emissions are increasing has also tripled in the past decade. New research shows that the actual global emissions since 2000 grew faster than in the highest of the IPCC scenarios. Nearly 8 billion tonnes of carbon were emitted globally as carbon dioxide in 2005, compared with 6 billion in 1995. [X][C][D][E][P][R]
Geoengineering climate Computer modelling suggests that geoengineering schemes could effectively cool the Earth within a few decades even if carbon dioxide levels were allowed to grow much higher. This suggests that there is no need to rush into building a geoengineering system before it is absolutely necessary. However, the modelling also shows that if the world decides to depend on geoengineering, it will need to be able to sustain this. If any hypothetical geoengineering program were to fail or be cancelled for any reason, a catastrophic spike in global temperatures could result. The study concentrated on geoengineering approaches that increase reflection of sunlight. [X][A][C][D][E][P]
Geoengineering climate Russian scientists have proposed a geoengineering approach to reduce global warming if carbon reduction does not prove sufficient. Their method envisions air spraying of a sulphur-containing aerosol in lower stratosphere layers at an altitude of 10 to 14 kilometres. Sulphur drops would then reflect solar radiation. They estimate that one million tons of aerosol sprayed above the planet would reduce solar radiation by 0.5 to 1 percent. [X][A][D][E]
EU strategy for preserving biodiversity One in six European mammals is now threatened with extinction, according to a report published by the European Commission. The Commission's aim is to halt European biodiversity loss by 2010. Experts say that, among the many challenges, there is a need for better monitoring of biodiversity status and trends, better standardised indicators and monitoring methods, and globally accessible, interoperable databases. Changes in land and water use are the main drivers of biodiversity loss in Europe, and it is important to clarify how agri-environmental schemes might increase biodiversity and how changes in land and water use interact with the effects of climate change. More research is needed on how biodiversity affects ecosystem services: provision of food, water, timber, and fibre; regulation of climate, floods, disease, wastes and water quality; cultural services (recreational, aesthetic, and spiritual benefits); and supporting services such as soil formation, photosynthesis, and nutrient cycling. Research must also evaluate better how biodiversity and ecosystem services in other parts of the world are affected by European policies, production and consumption patterns, transport, trade and tourism. [X][A][C][D][E][K][P][R][W]
The Traveller's Dilemma The "Problem of the Commons" will loom large this century as global warming and shrinking resources confront humanity with hard choices. Game theory is often used to investigate this and other aspects of human choice and negotiation. But a simple game called the Traveller's Dilemma (TD) shows that game theory can lead to absurd results and that, by acting illogically, players can end up reaping a much larger reward than game theory would predict. This challenges the narrow view of rational behaviour and cognitive processes taken by economists and many political scientists. It undermines the libertarian idea that unrestrained selfishness is good for the economy and the game-theoretic tenet that people will be selfish and rational. Experiments based on the TD shed light on how an arms race or competitive struggle can act as a gradual process leading to ever worsening outcomes. But they also suggest, more hopefully, that humans possess a meta-rationality that enables players to follow a non-rational course that allows them both to do well. [X][B][D][E][K][T]
Managing complexity According to a new study by McKinsey, one must distinguish between two types of complexity in organisations - institutional and individual. The former concerns the number and nature of interactions within an organisation; the latter the way individual employees and managers experience and deal with complexity. Managed well, complexity can increase the added value and resilience of a company, enabling it to expand internationally and to increase its customer base and product range. The space to handle this greater institutional complexity can be created by identifying and reducing individual complexity. This, according to McKinsey, involves making detailed organizational and operating-model choices, clarifying roles, refining key processes, and developing appropriate skills and capabilities. Companies can reduce individual complexity either by distributing institutional complexity across larger numbers of employees or by focusing it in a few pivotal roles and strengthening the capabilities of people in these roles. Using network analysis to map relationships and to highlight critical roles can help identify not only where complexity lies but also where it should be located. [X][K][W]
Resource allocation A survey by McKinsey of executives from around the world has highlighted how frequently a company’s resource allocation decisions go wrong. This happens despite the fact that senior executives are heavily involved in these decisions and routinely assess the prior performance of business units and the value creation potential of proposed projects, among other criteria. The survey focused on four types of investments: acquisitions, “maintenance” investments needed to sustain business as usual, projects aimed at stimulating growth in existing businesses, and efforts aimed at innovation. The study found that projects often go wrong either because executives hide, restrict, or misrepresent information when requesting funds or because of a less-than-ideal combination of optimism, risk aversion, and one-off decision making. Companies often underemphasise the importance of strategic fit and of viewing investment risks as part of an aggregate portfolio rather than just individually. [X][K][W]
Corporate health A healthy company is one that shows resilience to shocks, executes well, aligns employees around a common purpose, focuses on renewal, and ensures that its practices complement one another. According to a McKinsey report, businesses can work toward this elusive goal of company health by regularly analyzing the way they allocate resources, striking a balance among different types of initiatives, developing appropriate metrics to test their health, adapting their core processes, and reinforcing healthy attitudes through performance contracts. [X][K][W] |
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| [V] Virtuality and human-machine interface | |
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Virtual time machine - Rome Reborn An international team of archaeologists, architects and computer specialists has unveiled a computer simulation of Ancient Rome. The project has taken 10 years to complete and has reconstructed some 7,000 buildings of Rome in 320 AD, at the time of the emperor Constantine when Rome was at the height of its power and a cosmopolitan city of about 1 million people. The simulation reconstructs the interiors of about 30 buildings, including the Senate, the Colosseum and the basilica, complete with frescoes and decorations. It also recreates buildings that are now almost completely in ruins. Sections of the simulation are available on the Internet and it is possible that the entire simulation might be made available through the "Second Life" virtual world. The "Rome Reborn" project will eventually show the city's evolution from Bronze Age hut settlements to the Sack of Rome in the 5th century and the devastating Gothic Wars. It may be the start of a virtual time machine making it possible to experience the history of many ancient cities and civilisations as virtual worlds. [V][K]
Virtual world bullying Bullying is a problem not only in the workplace and schools, and by email and text, but also in virtual worlds such as Second Life, researchers have found. As with bullying in the real world, power is a key factor. In Second Life it appears that the power imbalance between a bully (griefer) and a target is focused on knowledge and experience. A new resident (newbie) may be targeted because of their naivety and inability to stop the griefing. [V][K]
Neuroelectronics Researchers at Tel Aviv University have demonstrated that neurons cultured outside the brain can be imprinted with multiple rudimentary memories that persist for days without interfering with or wiping out others. They say that this sets the stage for the creation of a neuromemory chip that could be paired with computer hardware. [V][B][C][K][U]
Deep brain stimulation Tens of thousands of patients have now been fitted with deep brain stimulators to ease symptoms of Parkinson's disease and other movement disorders. But, despite the clinical success of the treatment, it is not been clear how it works. Now research at Duke University suggests that by relaying a repetitious meaningless message, the deep stimulation drowns out the erratic pathological bursts of brain activity characteristic of the disease. The researchers created a mathematical model of a normally functioning brain cell, and then introduced the pathological pattern of activity seen in people with tremors. They assembled a group of these model cells and watched what would happen when the cells were electrically stimulated at various rates and intensities. In addition to showing how the therapy works, the results also revealed that stimulation delivered at too slow a pace fails to keep pathological activity at bay, and can indeed make it worse. This closely parallels the experience of patients. [V][B][H]
Transcranial magnetic stimulation In mice, stimulating the brain with a magnetic coil appears to promote the growth of new neurons in areas associated with learning and memory. If the effect is confirmed in humans, it might open up new ways of treating age-related memory decline and diseases like Alzheimer's. [V][B][H]
Visual perception New results demonstrate that mental resources devoted to attention can be amplified through training in intensive meditation. Laboratory tests have shown that intensive meditation training does more than foster inner peace and relaxation. Mental practice of this type boosts control over attention and use of neural resources, and expands a person's ability to notice rapidly presented items. The researches studied the effects of mediation training in reducing a phenomenon known as the attentional blink. Because visual perception requires time and effort, paying close attention to one object flashed on a computer screen often causes a person to overlook a second object presented within the next half second. Scientists suspect that attention momentarily shuts down as the first image is perceived. [V][B]
Connecting electrically into living cells Living cells cannot easily be connected to nanowires. In the past, researchers have had to physically push nanowires or carbon nanotubes into the cells, which can damage or kill them. Now US researchers have found that when cells in a solution settle onto an array of silicon nanowires, they gradually incorporate the wires into the cells without any resistance. Even embryonic stem cells, which are especially intolerant of disturbance, grew for over a month with the wires inside and differentiated into cardiac muscle that could beat like a heart. [V][B][G][N] |
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| [B] Brain research and human science | |
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Resynchronising the circadian clock A study has found that exposure to periods of extremely bright light (10,000 lux) a few hours before sleeping can resynchronise the body's internal clock. The study was particularly aimed at finding how to adapt future astronauts to living on Mars, which has a 24.65 hour day. But the light-pulse treatment might also be useful for reducing jet lag and for shift workers and people with sleep disorders. [B][A][H][V]
Jet lag and Viagra People find jet lag worse when travelling eastbound than westbound. Researchers in Argentina have found that a single small dose of the drug sildenafil (Viagra) helps hamsters adapt up to 50 percent faster than usual to a simulated eastbound six-hour time-zone change. They believe this works because the drug raises levels in the body of a small molecule called cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) and this temporarily "speeds up" the internal body clock in the brain. The dose used on the hamsters was small and the equivalent amount for humans would be much less than in a normal Viagra pill. [B][A][H]
Neural computation Researchers have found that rhesus macaques can accurately assess which of two behaviours is more likely to bring them a reward by summing together a series of probabilistic clues. The researchers tested each monkey by showing it a series of abstract shapes on a video screen. In each trial, the monkey saw a sequence of 4 of 10 possible shapes and then had to choose which target to look at. The probability that the red target would give the reward was the sum of the probabilities for each of the four shapes; otherwise, the green target yielded the reward. Both macaques learned to match their choices closely to the actual probabilities revealed by the shapes they saw, choosing the correct target more than 75 percent of the time. Electrodes implanted in the relevant area of each monkey's brain showed that neurons responded to the first shape by firing at a rate proportional to the probability suggested by that shape. As each successive shape was shown, the firing rate changed to match the probability determined by all the shapes seen so far. The neurons appeared to be computing the log likelihood ratio of red versus green rewards, as a statistician would do. [B][C] Models of learning Biomedical engineers from Johns Hopkins, MIT and Northwestern University have developed a computer model that explains how the brain draws both on what it recently learned and on what it has known for some time to anticipate what it needs in order to develop new motor skills. The model, which uses Bayesian probability theory, almost precisely duplicates the results of experiments that tested the ability of monkeys to vi | |||