ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• New robotic refueling technologies tested
• Maize and bacteria: A one-two punch knocks copper out of stamp sand
• Pumping iron: A hydrogel actuator with mussel tone
• A small step toward discovering habitable Earths
• Chandra and XMM-Newton provide direct measurement of distant black hole's spin
• Asteroid will safely pass closer than moon on March 5
• First step towards 'programmable materials': Sheet metal that never rattles
• Ultra sensitive detection of radio waves with lasers
• Seeking quantum-ness: D-Wave chip passes rigorous tests
• Save money and the planet: Turn your old milk jugs into 3-D printer filament
• Bioinspired, sponge-like shrinking gel steers tooth, tissue formation
• Guidance for optimal quality, safety of HDR brachytherapy
• Rough surface could keep small electronic parts from sticking together
• A wristband for a different kind of cause ... environmental health
• When disaster strikes: Safeguarding networks
• Platform would protect smartphones from cyber criminals
• The birds and the bees of proteins
• First light for MUSE: Powerful 3-D spectrograph successfully installed on Very Large Telescope
• Copied from nature: Detecting software errors via genetic algorithms
• Computer reads text written in the air and other innovations

New robotic refueling technologies tested Posted: 05 Mar 2014 04:17 PM PST NASA has successfully concluded a remotely controlled test of new technologies that would empower future space robots to transfer hazardous oxidizer -- a type of propellant -- into the tanks of satellites in space today.

Maize and bacteria: A one-two punch knocks copper out of stamp sand Posted: 05 Mar 2014 04:17 PM PST Scientists are working toward a simple, practical way to remediate mine waste laced with copper and other toxic elements. And they are shedding light on the inner workings of the plants and bacteria that do the cleanup.

Pumping iron: A hydrogel actuator with mussel tone Posted: 05 Mar 2014 04:15 PM PST Using iron ions and chemistry found in the adhesive proteins of a certain mollusk, scientists have developed a hydrogel actuator that moves when its pH is raised. Hydrogels are soft networks of polymers with high water content, like jello. Because of their soft, gentle texture, they have the potential to interact safely with living tissues and have applications in a number of medical areas, including tissue engineering. The hydrogel moved on its own, bending like an inchworm where the ions had been deposited.

A small step toward discovering habitable Earths Posted: 05 Mar 2014 01:08 PM PST For the first time, astronomers have used the same imaging technology found in a digital camera to take a picture of a planet far from our solar system with an Earth-based telescope. The accomplishment is a small step toward the technology astronomers will need in order to characterize planets suitable for harboring life.

Chandra and XMM-Newton provide direct measurement of distant black hole's spin Posted: 05 Mar 2014 10:54 AM PST Astronomers have used NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the European Space Agency's (ESA's) XMM-Newton to show a supermassive black hole six billion light years from Earth is spinning extremely rapidly. This first direct measurement of the spin of such a distant black hole is an important advance for understanding how black holes grow over time.

Asteroid will safely pass closer than moon on March 5 Posted: 05 Mar 2014 10:45 AM PST As happens about 20 times a year with current detection capabilities, a known asteroid will safely pass Earth on March 5 closer than the distance from Earth to the moon.

First step towards 'programmable materials': Sheet metal that never rattles Posted: 05 Mar 2014 10:24 AM PST Researchers have succeeded in producing a prototype of a vibration-damping material that could change the world of mechanics forever. The material of the future is not only able to damp vibrations completely. It can also specifically conduct certain frequencies further.

Ultra sensitive detection of radio waves with lasers Posted: 05 Mar 2014 10:23 AM PST Radio waves are used for many measurements and applications, for example, in communication with mobile phones, MRI scans, scientific experiments and cosmic observations. But 'noise' in the detector of the measuring instrument limits how sensitive and precise the measurements can be. Now researchers have developed a new method where they can avoid noise by means of laser light and can therefore achieve extreme precision of measurements.

Seeking quantum-ness: D-Wave chip passes rigorous tests Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:53 AM PST D-Wave quantum processor passes tests indicating that it uses special laws of quantum mechanics to operate. A key task for researchers has been to determine whether D-Wave processors operate as hoped -- using the special laws of quantum mechanics to offer potentially higher-speed processing, instead of operating in a classical, traditional way.

Save money and the planet: Turn your old milk jugs into 3-D printer filament Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:52 AM PST Making your own stuff with a 3-D printer is vastly cheaper than what you'd pay for manufactured goods, even factoring in the cost of buying the plastic filament. Yet, you can drive the cost down even more by making your own filament from old milk jugs. And, while you are patting yourself on the back for saving 99 cents on the dollar, there's a bonus: you can feel warm and fuzzy about preserving the environment. Making your own plastic 3-D printer filament from milk jugs uses less energy -- often a lot less -- than recycling milk jugs conventionally.

Bioinspired, sponge-like shrinking gel steers tooth, tissue formation Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:52 AM PST A new bioinspired sponge-like gel shrinks single-handedly, squeezing unspecialized cells inside it and turning them into cells that begin to form teeth. The new material was inspired by the embryo's power to shape organs, and it could enable engineering of new teeth, bone, or other tissues, scientists report.

Guidance for optimal quality, safety of HDR brachytherapy Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:52 AM PST A new white paper has been issued that recommends specific guidance to follow in the delivery of high-dose-rate brachytherapy to improve quality and patient safety. To ensure correct actions are followed for a specific brachytherapy procedure, the white paper recommends the use of a quality management program, including checklists and forms to maintain quality and prevent errors. Also, due to the multidisciplinary nature of HDR brachytherapy treatment, the modality requires coordination among several clinicians to treat the patient accurately and safely.

Rough surface could keep small electronic parts from sticking together Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:51 AM PST When a piece of gift-wrapping tape sticks to itself, it's frustrating, but when small parts in a microgear or micromotor stick together, an electronic device may not work well, if at all. Scientists now report that rough zinc oxide coatings can prevent tiny silicon parts from adhering to each other. The study could accelerate the development of even more advanced, high-performance electronics and small sensors.

A wristband for a different kind of cause ... environmental health Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:51 AM PST From 'Livestrong' to 'Purple Paws,' trendy wristbands have come to represent causes from cancer to ending cruelty to animals. Add a new wristband of a different sort: one that could close the loop on determining the potential disease risks of exposure to substances like pesticides.

When disaster strikes: Safeguarding networks Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:51 AM PST Disasters both natural and human-caused can damage or destroy data and communications networks. New information on strategies that can mitigate the impacts of these disasters.

Platform would protect smartphones from cyber criminals Posted: 05 Mar 2014 09:51 AM PST Criminals don't have to pick your pocket to get what they want out of your mobile. But a certifiably secure operating platform is being developed by researchers so that consumers can be confident that their mobile data is safe.

The birds and the bees of proteins Posted: 05 Mar 2014 07:59 AM PST A split-second snapshot of an early stage of protein formation could someday lead to more effective antibiotics. Proteins are the worker bees of cells. They get rid of waste, transmit cellular signals and carry out the chemical reactions that enable the human body to function. Without proteins, cells would be unable to function, replicate, and die. Viruses, bacteria and cancer cells also need proteins to reproduce. Using computer modelling, researchers examined the role of one specific protein, and its ultimate effect on health.

First light for MUSE: Powerful 3-D spectrograph successfully installed on Very Large Telescope Posted: 05 Mar 2014 05:48 AM PST A new innovative instrument called MUSE (Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer) has been successfully installed on ESO's Very Large Telescope at the Paranal Observatory in northern Chile. MUSE has observed distant galaxies, bright stars and other test targets during the first period of very successful observations.

Copied from nature: Detecting software errors via genetic algorithms Posted: 05 Mar 2014 05:48 AM PST Software developers are spending about the half of their time detecting errors and resolving them. Projected onto the global software industry, this would amount to a bill of about 312 billion US dollars every year. Researchers are now automating the process.

Computer reads text written in the air and other innovations Posted: 05 Mar 2014 05:46 AM PST In the future, computers and humans will cooperate more seamlessly: perhaps by easier access to data or by the intuitive control of programs and robots. Conference exhibits along this line include gesture-controlled communication, firewalls to data management and computer-supported surgery.

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