metal
North Carolina State University engineers have created a new material that would allow a fingernail-size computer chip to store the equivalent of 20 high-definition DVDs or 250 million pages of text, far exceeding the storage capacities of today's computer memory systems.
"HARPS is a unique, extremely high precision instrument that is ideal for discovering alien worlds," says Stéphane Udry, who made the announcement. "We have now completed our initial five-year programme, which has succeeded well beyond our expectations."
AUGUSTA, Ga. -- A new tool developed by a Medical College of Georgia resident and faculty member may make it easier to place assisted breathing devices under difficult circumstances.
About 2 percent of patients that undergo the process, called intubation, experience complications -- regardless if it's performed in an emergency situation or prior to surgery.
Could sustainable architecture address pollution, climate change and resource depletion by helping us build self-sufficient, off-grid, housing from "waste", including vehicle tires and metal drinks containers? That's the question researchers at the University of South Australia hope to answer in the International Journal of Sustainable Design.
Electric mobility is becoming increasingly important. The German government's ambitious plan envisages one million electric cars being sold in Germany by the year 2020. Until then, however, researchers still have to overcome some hurdles, such as the question of energy storage.
CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Researchers at Oregon State University and other institutions have developed a new "plasmonic nanorod metamaterial" using extraordinarily tiny rods of gold that will have important applications in medical, biological and chemical sensors.
New drive technologies combined with lighter and stronger materials will make the airplanes and automobiles of the future more fuel-efficient. But a number of technical details need to be resolved first. Magnetic ball valves are one example -- for them to react extremely quickly, the balls must be as light as possible, and the same applies to rapidly moving bearings.
Researchers analyzing the assembly of graphene (sheets of carbon only one atom thick) on a surface of iridium have found that the sheets grow by first forming tiny carbon domes. The discovery offers new insight into the growth of graphene layers and points the way to possible methods for assembling components of graphene-based computer circuits.
Australian scientists have found that the bacterium Cupriavidus metallidurans catalyses the biomineralisation of gold by transforming toxic gold compounds to their metallic form using active cellular mechanism.
Scientists have a long and unsuccessful history of attempting to convert hydrogen to a metal by squeezing it under incredibly high and steady pressures.
Metallic hydrogen is predicted to be a high-temperature superconductor. A superconductor is a state of matter where electrons, and thus electricity, can flow indefinitely and without resistance.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Small bits of metal may play a new role in solar power.
Researchers at Ohio State University are experimenting with polymer semiconductors that absorb the sun's energy and generate electricity. The goal: lighter, cheaper, and more-flexible solar cells.
The first demonstration of a renewable method for hydrogen production from wastewater using a microbial electrolysis system is underway at the Napa Wine Company in Oakville.
A new ceramic material described in this week's issue of the journal Science could help expand the applications for solid oxide fuel cells -- devices that generate electricity directly from a wide range of liquid or gaseous fuels without the need to separate hydrogen.
KNOXVILLE -- Mercury pollution is a persistent problem in the environment. Human activity has lead to increasingly large accumulations of the toxic chemical, especially in waterways, where fish and shellfish tend to act as sponges for the heavy metal.
When parents are told their babies' scoliosis needs treatment, they often try bracing first. If that fails, they need surgery to place metal rods in their backs with spinal fusion later on. These children face the risk of complications from the surgery and their backs and chests may be stiff for life.
