Nanoparticle Temporarily Violates the Second Law of Thermodynamics

Latest Science & Technology News

April 9, 2014

New Research Tests Theory that Life Originated at Deep Sea Vents

New research from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution tests the theory that simple metabolic reactions near ancient seafloor hot springs enabled life as we know it to begin. One of the greatest mysteries facing humans is how life originated on Earth. Scientists have determined approximately when life began (roughly 3.8 billion years ago), but there is […]

April 9, 2014

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ESO’s Very Large Telescope Views Planetary Nebula Abell 33

This newly released image from ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile shows planetary nebula Abell 33. Astronomers using ESO’s Very Large Telescope in Chile have captured this eye-catching image of planetary nebula PN A66 33 — usually known as Abell 33. Created when an aging star blew off its outer layers, this beautiful blue bubble […]

April 9, 2014

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Study Shows Nanoparticles in Consumer Products Can Damage DNA

Using high-speed screening technology to analyze DNA, a newly published study found that nanoparticles commonly added to consumer products can significantly damage DNA. Thousands of consumer products — including cosmetics, sunscreens, and clothing — contain nanoparticles added by manufacturers to improve texture, kill microbes, or enhance shelf life, among other purposes. However, several studies have […]

April 9, 2014

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Curiosity Image Captures Mysterious Bright Spot

A newly released Curiosity image shows a bright spot on the surface of Mars, which was possibly caused by the sun glinting off a rock or cosmic rays striking the camera’s detector. Images taken by NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover on April 2 and April 3 include bright spots, which might be due to the sun […]

April 8, 2014

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Engineers Develop Video Game Controller that Can Sense Players’ Emotions

Engineers from Stanford University have developed a handheld video game controller that can measure the player’s physiology and alter the gameplay to make it more engaging. Sometimes, a dozen ravenous zombies just aren’t exciting enough to hold a video gamer’s interest. The next step in interactive gaming, however, could come in the form of a […]

April 8, 2014

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New Radar Images from Cassini Show Familiar Forms on Titan’s Dunes

New radar images from the Cassini orbiter show dark streaks carved into dunes on Saturn’s moon Titan. The moons of our Solar System are brimming with unusual landscapes. However, sometimes they look a little more familiar, as in this new radar image from the Cassini orbiter. The image shows dark streaks carved into dunes reminiscent […]

April 8, 2014

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Superlattice Study Reveals Gear-Like Molecular-Scale Machines

A newly published study from researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology reveals how superlattices create molecular machines with hydrogen-bond “hinges” and moving “gears.” A combined computational and experimental study of self-assembled silver-based structures known as superlattices has revealed an unusual and unexpected behavior: arrays of gear-like molecular-scale machines that rotate in unison when pressure […]

April 8, 2014

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Astronomers Make the Most Precise Measurement Yet of the Expanding Universe

Using 140,000 distant quasars, astronomers from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey have made the most precise measurement to date of the expanding Universe. The Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS), the largest component of the third Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-III), pioneered the use of quasars to map density variations in intergalactic gas at high redshifts, […]

April 7, 2014

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CfA Scientists Measure the Rate of Expansion of the Universe

Using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, CfA scientists examined 264,283 galaxies and measured the signature of the acoustic waves left behind. Perhaps the most astonishing and revolutionary discovery in cosmology was that galaxies are moving away from us. Hubble’s 1929 paper provides the underpinning of the big bang picture of creation in which […]

April 7, 2014

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Study Reveals How and When Earth Developed Its Rigid Tectonic Plates

Newly published research from Yale University and Université de Lyon in France shows how and when Earth developed its rigid tectonic plates and why Venus never has. “We think it all comes down to the behavior of tiny grains of minerals within rocks,” said Yale geophysicist David Bercovici, lead author of research published online April […]

April 7, 2014

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Researchers Uncover Mode of Action of New Multiple Sclerosis Drug

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute and the University of Lübeck have uncovered the mode of action for dimethyl fumarate, a drug that was recently approved in Europe as a basic therapy for multiple sclerosis. Just a few short weeks ago, dimethyl fumarate was approved in Europe as a basic therapy for multiple sclerosis. Although […]

April 7, 2014

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Researchers Observe What Happens During a Quantum Phase Transition

In a newly published study, researchers observe what happens during a quantum phase transition, and compare the “quantum melting” of the magnetic structure with the classical “thermal melting” phase transition. When ice is warmed, the water molecules forming its structure vibrate more and more vigorously until finally the forces between them are no longer strong […]