Add BrightSurf on Google Email

Science News for April 6, 2007


High-res images spell new era in Earth sciences

Researchers adapt oil industry technology to image the core-mantle boundary at 2,900 kilometers beneath Central and North America, providing detailed views of the lower mantle. The technique helps understand Earth's internal heat engine and giant cycle of heat production and transfer.

SourceMassachusetts Institute of Technology·JournalScience·DateApr 6, 2007

PneuStep -- MRI-safe motor makes robotic biopsies possible

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine have developed a motor that can safely power remote-controlled robotic medical devices for cancer biopsies and therapies guided by magnetic resonance imaging. The motor, dubbed PneuStep, is made entirely out of plastics, ceramics, and rubber and is driven by light and air.

SourceJohns Hopkins Medicine·DateApr 6, 2007

Researchers move closer to switching nuclear isomer decay on and off

Livermore researchers have made the most accurate measurement of a nuclear isomer's excitation energy, a crucial step towards controlling its decay. This breakthrough could enable the use of isomers as high-energy density storage systems like batteries, and has implications for quantum computing, general relativity testing, and more.

SourceDOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory·JournalPhysical Review Letters·DateApr 6, 2007

MIT M. Nafi Toksoz honored by seismologists

The Seismological Society of America honors MIT's M. Nafi Toksoz for his 40-year investment in the field, defining seismology and its practice. He has mentored over 100 postdoctoral students, promoting a research environment at MIT.

SourceSeismological Society of America·DateApr 6, 2007
GoPro HERO13 Black

GoPro HERO13 Black records stabilized 5.3K video for instrument deployments, field notes, and outreach, even in harsh weather and underwater conditions.

Deflecting damage: Flexible electronics aid brain injury research

Researchers at Princeton University developed flexible electronic membranes to replicate brain injuries in the lab without damaging electrodes. The membranes enable precise measurements of cellular activity before and after traumatic brain injury, providing valuable insights into functional damage.

SourcePrinceton University, Engineering School·DateApr 6, 2007

Drug used to prevent HIV transmission from mother to child damages DNA

Recent studies have found that the antiretroviral drug AZT causes genetic damage that may increase future cancer risk. Animal studies demonstrated increased rates of tumors and gene changes associated with human cancer, while human studies observed mutations and chromosomal damage in newborns exposed to NRTIs in utero.

SourceWiley·JournalEnvironmental and Molecular Mutagenesis·DateApr 6, 2007

UAF researchers garner $6.5 million in NSF grants

Four UAF researchers have been awarded significant funding from the National Science Foundation for projects studying the Arctic circumpolar region. The research, including studies on climate change, boreal forests and winter precipitation, aims to better understand the structure of the stratospheric vortex and its impact on ecosystems.

SourceUniversity of Alaska Fairbanks·DateApr 6, 2007

Combined imaging approach may provide better identification of difficult-to-diagnose brain clots

A combined imaging approach that combines standard MRI scans with specialized contrast-enhanced techniques may provide more effective diagnoses in patients with difficult-to-detect blood clots in veins of the brain. This approach could lead to better understanding of the disease process and potentially alter treatment regimens.

SourceUniversity of Cincinnati·JournalAmerican Journal of Neuroradiology·DateApr 6, 2007
DJI Air 3 (RC-N2)

DJI Air 3 (RC-N2) captures 4K mapping passes and environmental surveys with dual cameras, long flight time, and omnidirectional obstacle sensing.

Partners of cancer survivors at risk for depression

A new study examines partners of cancer survivors who underwent blood and marrow transplant, finding equal levels of mental health impairment, but with differing treatment outcomes and social support

SourceAmerican Society of Clinical Oncology·JournalJournal of Clinical Oncology·DateApr 6, 2007

Super-cool MIT work could expose quantum behavior

MIT researchers have cooled a dime-sized mirror to 0.8 degrees Kelvin, a temperature that would take 13 billion years for it to circle the Earth. The team hopes to use this technique to observe quantum behavior in large objects, which is currently only possible at extremely low temperatures.

SourceMassachusetts Institute of Technology·JournalPhysical Review Letters·DateApr 6, 2007