2006 December

Researchers at Purdue University have used a new technique to rapidly detect and precisely identify bacteria, including dangerous E. coli, without time-consuming treatments usually required.
The technique, called desorption electrospray ionization, or DESI, could be used to create a new class of fast, accurate detectors for applications ranging from food safety to homeland security, said R. […]

A strategic plan and more resources for risk research are needed now in order to ensure safe nano-workplaces today and in the future. That is the conclusion of Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies Chief Science Advisor Andrew Maynard in a new article, “Nanotechnology and Safety” just released by Cleanroom Technology magazine. The article is available in […]

In hemophilia, a mutated gene prevents the production of a critical blood-clotting protein. Treatments for hemophilia and other such genetic diseases, when they exist, may consist of risky blood transfusions or expensive enzyme replacement therapy. But what if the body could be induced to begin producing these proteins, say by transplanting healthy tissue with the […]

RealTechNews reports:
Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia, intends to start his own search engine. The project would be called Wikiasari (from wiki, the Hawaiian word for quick, and asari, which is Japanese for “rummaging search”). He indicated it would use the same user-based technology, which sounds like the idea would be to have users contribute […]

“We just finished another patrol. For once, everything was quiet. The guys even had some spare time to put up a make shift Christmas tree. Here are the pictures to prove it,” says a blog post, along with a few photos, from a lonely Marine stationed in Iraq. This particular soldier will later view a […]

The theorists who first created the mathematics that describe the behavior of the recently announced “invisibility cloak” have revealed a new analysis that may extend the current cloak’s powers, enabling it to hide even actively radiating objects like a flashlight or cell phone.
Allan Greenleaf, professor of mathematics at the University of Rochester, working with colleagues […]

The address is:
Santa Claus,
North Pole,
Canada
And the postal code? Why it’s H0H OHO of course!
Check out Santa’s Corner on the Web!
There are other activities for kids at the site, including cartoons, fun and games, activities, craft suggestions, and recipes.
There’s also an email form here.

Tags: santa’s corner, write to santa, email santa, h0h oho

Imagine a car windshield that displays a map to your destination, military goggles with targets and instructions displayed right before a soldier’s eyes, or a billboard that doubles as a window.
Only in science fiction you say? Northwestern University researchers report that by combining organic and inorganic materials they have produced transparent, high-performance transistors that can […]

Massive quantities of data will soon begin flowing from the largest scientific instrument ever built into an international network of computer centers, including one operated jointly by the University of Chicago and Indiana University. The first phase of the Chicago-Indiana center, formally known as the MidWest Tier 2 Center, is now up and running, crunching […]

Polar Rose, a company uniquely combining automatic face recognition with 3D modeling for visual search applications, today announced its product and an open beta trial, beginning in Q1 of 2007.
Using Polar Rose’s technology, it will now be possible to automatically search for and recognize faces on a consistent basis similar to the way people do […]

You don’t need to sign up for pricey wine appreciation classes to parse the subtle difference between the black cherry bouquet of a pinot noir and the black currant scent of a cabernet sauvignon. Just pour yourself a couple glasses and sniff. Your brain will quickly help you become a modest oenophile. It’s up to […]

A few years ago, an international team of researchers went to the middle of the Pacific Ocean and drilled down five kilometers below sea level in an effort to uncover secrets about the earth’s climate history. They exceeded their expectations and have published their findings in the Dec. 22 edition of the journal Science.
The researchers’ […]

The University of Colorado today announced it has entered into an exclusive license agreement with Quidel Corp. to market Flu Chip and MChip diagnostic technologies developed by CU-Boulder researchers in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
The Flu Chip and MChip can be used to determine the genetic makeup of specific […]

Psychological experiments that stopped 40 years ago because of ethical concerns could instead be conducted in cyberspace in the future.
By repeating the Stanley Milgram’s classic experiment from the 1960s on obedience to authority - that found people would administer apparently lethal electrical shocks to a stranger at the behest of an authority figure - in […]

Drawing on advances in robotics and computer technology, Johns Hopkins University researchers are designing new high-tech medical tools to equip the operating room of the future. These systems and instruments could someday help doctors treat patients more safely and effectively and allow them to perform surgical tasks that are nearly impossible today.
The tools include a […]

Alice Hill of RealTechNews writes:
Online apps keep on getting better. Our own David Johnston has been a big fan of OpenOffice as a competitor to the traditional suite of Microsoft Office apps you load on your own system. But here’s a suite of similar apps (spreadsheet, word processor, presentation, drawing, etc.) from Ajax13 that loads […]

The latest content-shifting products and emerging technologies in the wireless industry will connect once again at the 2007 International CES, with the latest advancements in mobile phones, PDAs, wireless notebooks, wireless distribution systems and more on display. Produced by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the 2007 International CES, the world’s largest consumer technology tradeshow, returns […]

How a potentially deadly bacterium that could be used as a bioterrorist tool eludes being killed by the human immune system is now better understood, University of Iowa researchers report in the December issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology.
This bacterium, Francisella tularensis, is found naturally in the Northern Hemisphere and can be contracted through […]

A new anti-aging ingredient developed by UNSW researchers is expected to be available in skin products as early as next year.
Known as GGC, it is a precursor for an effective antioxidant known as glutathione, that has a broad range of potential health benefits. Glutathione is the body’s key defence for detoxifying harmful compounds implicated in […]

Healthy coral reefs provide their adjacent coasts with substantially more protection from destructive tsunami waves than do unhealthy or dead reefs, a Princeton University study suggests.
Initially spurred by the tsunami that devastated the coastlines of the Indian Ocean two years ago, a team of scientists developed the first-ever computer model of a tsunami strike against […]