Transcription Factors Tells Difference between Chimps and Humans

A new study indicate broad differences in the gene activity of humans and chimpanzees, affecting nearly 1000 genes, even though humans and chimps share 97% of genes. Transcription factors are proteins that bind to specific regions of DNA to promote or repress the activity of many genes. A single transcription factor can spur the transcription of dozens of genes into messenger RNA. A small change in transcription factor expression can produce a large effect on overall gene expression differences between chimps and humans.

Reference: Science Daily

Robotics Revolution and AI

Reference: TVO

Deciphering the Human Brain

New research indicates that the brain processes information more flexibly than previously thought, where overlapping of thoughts and deciphering information occur frequently at high speed. The underlying theory of "liquid computing" was developed by Henry Markham and Maass and published in the journal Nature Reviews in Neuroscience.

Reference:
Victor et al. Distributed Fading Memory for Stimulus Properties in the Primary Visual Cortex. PLoS Biology, 2009; 7 (12): e1000260 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1000260

Organic PV Inexpensive

A senior scientist at Denmark's National Laboratory for Sustainable Energy has found a cheap method to integrate LEDs, photovoltaic (PV) cells and ultrathin lithium batteries into a potentially useful lamp. It may be the solution to the lack of access to electricity in the developing countries. Most organic PVs are composed of conducting polymers and carbon nanostructures, which in the right combinations mimic the p-n junction of silicon and other inorganic photovoltaics.

Reference: IEEE Spectrum

Bacteria to Power Micro Machines

Scientists have discovered that common bacteria can turn into micro-gears hundreds of times larger than itself when suspended in a solution. This provides insight into bio-inspired dynamically adaptive materials for energy. The ability to harness and control the power of bacterial motions is an important requirement for further developing hybrid bio-mechanical systems driven by micro-organisms. A few hundred bacteria are working together in order to turn the gear. The speed at which the gears turn can also be controlled through the manipulation of oxygen in the suspended liquid.

Reference: Science Daily

Photonic Crystals = Incredible Insulator

Scientists have found that layering photonic crystals within the vacuum lining can prevent heat loss from invisible infrared radiation, creating an incredible insulator. Heat typically travels via methods such as convection and conduction, which both require a material medium. In addition, heat can transfer through infrared radiation, or passing through a vacuum lining to a thermos's outer wall. Photonic crystals consist of tiny nano-structures that affect how light passes through. They can be configured to block certain frequency ranges of light, including infrared radiation. Tests on the new insulator showed that heat transfer does not rely on layer thickness, but only on how fast light can travel through the material. The research team hopes that the photonic crystals is applicable in areas beyond communications and computing applications.

Reference: Science Daily

Firefighting ATV can Operate in Hash Environment

Yanko displayed an ATV design by Liam Ferguson that can carry remotely-operated water cannons and a two-person crew into the heart of a raging blaze, and emerge unscathed. Firefighters currently rely on utility vehicles for hot-spots. These vehicles work well in a pinch for navigating rough terrain, but it cannot survive a burn-over when flames suddenly sweep over the area. The proposed Amatoya vehicle uses aerogel laminated insulation and a temperature-controlled spray down system which draws on an auxiliary water tank. Amatoya can also hold 1,800 liters of water supply, as well as the 400-liter auxiliary water tank.

Reference:
www.popsci.com/technology

Hidden Sensory System Under the Skin

The human sensory system is more complex than previously thought, according to a new study and published in he journal, "Pain". The sensory network is located throughout the human blood vessels and sweat glands. The skin has many different nerve endings that distinguish between different temperatures, types of mechanical contact (vibrations, movement and etc). The new research indicates that these nerve endings appear on blood vessels and sweat glands as well. Yet there is another type of mental sensory feedback which remains as a mystery.

Reference:
Bowsher et al. Absence of pain with hyperhidrosis: A new syndrome where vascular afferents may mediate cutaneous sensation. Pain, 2009; 147 (1-3): 287 DOI: 10.1016/j.pain.2009.09.007

Hydrogen Storage Next Step

A team of scientists first invented the capillary array technology for use in the Soviet space program. Glass is more ideal than Steel for hydrogen storage, in terms of weight, cost and storage capacity. The hydrogen storage techhnology developed C.En has be endorsed for its safety by top German institute. (Hydrogen is highly explosive) The lightweight storage and safety factors give the technology a big commercial potential.

Reference: BusinessWeek

Why Cancer Won't Die

Cells attempt to repair themselves when damaged and if that fails, the damaged cells are suppose to self-destruct, a process called apoptosis. One of the hallmarks of caner is that the cells do not initiate apoptosis, which can be difficult to cure cancer. A new discovery of the RanBPM protein that is involved in activating apoptosis. This protein can be used to re-activate apoptosis, killing cancer cells.

Reference: Science Daily

Gravity Measurements Answer Questions on Climate Change

For years, there are questions and discussion on the impact of climate change on the ice-covered regions of the globe. Scientists have been investigating space-borne gravity measurements in the GRACE satellite mission. It is based on the fact that the redistribution of masses on the Earth surface can be mapped in terms of the terrestrial gravity field. The results indicate that Greenland's glaciers are shrinking at an accelerating pace.

Reference: Science Daily

A-Team of Robots

New Platinum Compound for Fighting Cancer

MIT chemists have developed a new platinum compound that is as powerful as the commonly used anticancer drug cisplatin but better equipped to destroy tumor cells. Cancer cells switch their mitochondrial properties to change the way they metabolize glucose compared to normal cells, and dichloroacetate (DCA) specifically targets the altered mitochondria, leaving normal cells intact.

Reference:
Shanta Dhar and Stephen Lippard. Mitaplatin, a potent fusion of cisplatin and the orphan drug dichloroacetate. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Week of Dec. 7, 2009

Paper + Nanotechnology = Greater Power

Scientists have made batteries and supercapacitors with little more than ordinary office paper and some carbon and silver nanomaterials. Lightweight printable batteries is within grasp to be molded into computers, cell phones or solar panels. At the nano-scale, paper is a tangled matrix of fibers where the surface area helps inks stick. The paper acts as a scaffold, and the carbon nanotubes act as electrodes that electrolytes in solution react with. This nanotube-paper combination offers a lightweight alternative to traditional energy storage devices that rely on metals. Calculations indicate that conductive paper coated with a kilogram of the carbon nano-tubes is more efficient than plastic-based flat energy-storage devices. Power storage is an important aspect of the power crisis.

Reference: Wired

Spot Nanoparticles

There is a growing interest in detecting nanoparticles and nanotechnologists are racing to build devices that can detect and characterise these particles. One method is having resonating devices that changes when a nanoparticle is bounced off the surface, measured by a laser. However this method is only ideal in certain cases and positions. Researchers from Washington University have a new vibrating micro-mushroom device that promises greater reliability in detecting nanoparticles.

Reference:
arxiv.org/abs/0912.0078

Roomba Pac-Man

The Research and Engineering Center for Unmanned Vehicles (RECUV) at the University of Colorado at Boulder has been developing software that helps robots form ad-hoc networks and distribute cooperative control of their operations. They've implemented a real-life version of Pac-Man using Roombas.

Google Public DNS and Privacy

Google is expanding its grasp on the Internet with a newly revealed DNS where the domain name system finds and directs the user to a website. The system translates that into the matching numerical address of the website's server. DNS lookups is usually done automatically, but there are third-party DNS resolver like Google Public DNS. The advantage of this is that it can be faster, more efficient and more secure. However, the collection of IP address, name, personal identifying data, location, websites and technical details.

Reference: PC World

Bionic Arms Gain Ground

Prosthetic legs have been supported by high-performance carbon-fiber springs, but current prosthetic arms are way behind in terms of technology. Conventional prosthetic arms offer little freedom of movement, where as advance prosthetic arms offer higher flexibility, dexterity and feedback. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency created two prototypes for prosthetic arms. The first one can be controlled naturally with sensory feedback that allow eight degrees of freedom. The second is more ambitious and allows for a range of motion similar to a real arm.

Reference: Wired