July 22, 2006, 10:45 PM CT

Watching Real-time Chemical Activity In Cells

Attempts to identify potential drugs that interfere with the action of one particular enzyme linked to heart disease and similar health problems led scientists at Johns Hopkins to create a new tool and new experimental approach that allow them to see multiple, real-time chemical reactions in living cells. Their report on the work is published July 21 in the journal ACS Chemical Biology.

Most current drug development operations test chemicals on enzymes isolated from their normal environs and then take further steps to see if the chemical can get into the cell to do its work, and figure out how poisonous the chemical is to a cell.

"Living cells are critical to our work because they show us how and what is actually happening in a normal context and time span when a chemical is added," says Jin Zhang, Ph.D., an assistant professor of pharmacology and molecular sciences in Hopkins' Institute for Basic Biomedical Sciences.

Testing chemicals on enzymes in living cells provides the opportunity to find potential drugs that work in new ways. For example, using living cells allows researchers to "see" where in the cell chemicals do their work. Scientists could then design new drugs to go to specific places within cells to work more efficiently. Also, streamlining the one-at-a-time approach offers the chance to study - and rule out or in - many potentially useful chemicals at once.........

Posted by: Sarah      Permalink         Source

July 20, 2006, 10:01 PM CT

Add Nanotubes and Stir

Polymer researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology have some stirring results to share with scientists and companies developing new, advanced composite materials with carbon nanotubes-mix carefully.

In a paper for Physical Review Letters,* they explain how the amount of force applied while mixing carbon nanotube suspensions influences the way the tiny cylinders ultimately disperse and orient themselves. In turn, the final arrangement of the nanotubes largely dictates the properties of the resultant materials.

Measuring only a few nanometers in diameter (the width of a handful of atoms), carbon nanotubes possess a number of superior properties that make them highly desirable additives in composites, a class of engineered materials made by blending polymers and fibers or by combining other types of unlike materials. Mixed in polymeric materials, carbon nanotubes can provide incredible strength, toughness and electrical conductivity. The trouble is, nanotubes stick to each other and form networks that tend to stay fixed in place. Apply enough force, the networks will flow but commonly end up in tangled clumps. The resultant nanocomposites are difficult to mold or shape, and their properties fall short of expectations.

In an elegantly simple result, NIST scientists Erik Hobbie and Dan Fry observed that networks of carbon nanotubes respond predictably to externally applied force. The networks also showed behavior reminiscent of more conventional materials that align spontaneously under the forces of Brownian motion-the random motion of particles in a fluid famously described mathematically by Einstein.........

Posted by: Kevin      Permalink         Source

July 20, 2006, 7:40 PM CT

Samsung T609 Review

The first thing you'll notice about Samsung T609 is the color. This flip phone comes in a pearl white that shimmers and has a distinct feel to it. Upon flipping the phone open, users will notice that the screen and keypad do not lay flat against each other at a 180-degree angle. The T609 has a slightly tilted display, which is easier to view than most phones. This configuration also allows for users to talk easily with the phone up to their mouth. As weird as it might sound, it's been a while since we came a cross a phone with talking in mind, rather than an emphasis on features.

Samsung did a great job with the UI on this device. It is very similar to the one found on the T809, T509, and other T-series phones. Incredibly easy to use and very easy to navigate, people looking for a fast interface without clutter will be very pleased with what this phone has to offer. The keypad is also practical with numbers, a basic d-pad, and a few other buttons. The keys are raised off the device and have a plastic, toy-like feel to them. In this case, that is a good thing.........

Posted by: Kevin      Permalink         Source

July 20, 2006, 6:37 PM CT

Solar Panel Trickle Charger

Never have a dead battery in your car, boat, motorcycle, ATV or RV again!.

1.0W Solar Charger harnesses the energy of the sun to keep your vehicle's battery fully charged and ready to go! Simply plug it in to your vehicles 12V lighter socket, position the panel to get the most daylight available, and it charges the battery using solar energy. 2-year limited warranty.........

Posted by: Kevin      Permalink         Source

July 19, 2006, 11:22 PM CT

Cluster Hits The Magnetic Bull's-eye

ESA's spacecraft constellation Cluster has hit the magnetic bull's-eye. The four spacecraft surrounded a region within which the Earth's magnetic field was spontaneously reconfiguring itself.

This is the first time such an observation has been made and gives astronomers a unique insight into the physical process responsible for the most powerful explosions that can occur in the Solar System: the magnetic reconnection.

When looking at the static pattern of iron filings around a bar magnet, it is difficult to imagine how changeable and violent magnetic fields can be in other situations.

In space, different regions of magnetism behave somewhat like large magnetic bubbles, each containing electrified gas known as plasma. When the bubbles meet and are pushed together, their magnetic fields can break and reconnect, forming a more stable magnetic configuration. This reconnection of magnetic fields generates jets of particles and heats the plasma.

At the very heart of a reconnection event, there must be a three dimensional zone where the magnetic fields break and reconnect. Researchers call this region the null point but, until now, have never been able to positively identify one, as it requires at least four simultaneous points of measurements.........

Posted by: Brooke      Permalink         Source

July 18, 2006, 6:11 AM CT

Seismic Shock Absorbers For Woodframe Houses

As part of a major international project to design more earthquake-resistant woodframe buildings, Michael Symans, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rensselaer, will be testing a damping system designed to act as a seismic shock absorber. The dampers, which have never been tested before in wood construction, will be installed inside the walls of a full-scale, 1,800-square-foot townhouse - the world's largest wooden structure to undergo seismic testing on a shake table.

The unprecedented testing is part of a $1.24 million international project called NEESWood, funded by the National Science Foundation through its George E. Brown Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) program. The goal of NEESWood is to safely increase the height of woodframe buildings in active seismic zones through the development of a design approach that considers a wide range of performance levels - from completely undamaged to almost collapsing.

The height of woodframe buildings traditionally has been limited to about four stories, mainly due to a lack of understanding of how taller structures might respond to earthquakes and other natural disasters. "We don't have accurate physical data to fully define how wood structures behave in earthquakes," Symans said. "We have some models, but their accuracy has not been verified with full-scale test data. This experiment will help us to further evaluate and refine those models".........

Posted by: Tyler      Permalink         Source

July 17, 2006, 6:24 PM CT

Fiber Webs That See

In a radical departure from conventional lens-based optics, MIT researchers have developed a sophisticated optical system made of mesh-like webs of light-detecting fibers. The fiber constructs, which have many advantages over their lens-based predecessors, are currently capable of measuring the direction, intensity and phase of light (a property used to describe a light wave) without the lenses, filters or detector arrays that are the classic elements of optical systems such as eyes or cameras.

Ultimately the scientists expect the new system will be capable of much more, with potential applications ranging from improved space telescopes to clothing that provides situational awareness to soldiers or even the visually impaired.

The transparent fiber-webs could even enable huge computer screens to be activated with beams of light instead of the touch of a finger. "We could use light to enhance interaction with computers and even gaming systems," said Professor Yoel Fink of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Research Lab of Electronics, leader of the team. "It's intriguing--the idea of touching with light".

The researchers report the work in the June 25 online edition of Nature Materials, and it is featured on the cover of the July print issue of the magazine.........

Posted by: Kevin      Permalink         Source

July 13, 2006, 0:18 AM CT

Most User-friendly Lightest Helicopter in the World

If you have been in awe of flying but cannot afford to learn, then this Japanese ultralight one-man helicopter, GEN H-4 can make your dreams come true. Looking quite odd with the bent 2 inch frame, strange looking wheels and fiberglass back pack, I still believe it will give utmost flying pleasure as it is the smallest co- axial helicopter ever made and easiest to fly too.

This superlight 155 lbs helicopter is easy to control too-the entire control panels are located just under the pilot's nose. Strangely, you get the four tiny twin cylinder engines on top of the aircraft.

However, you will get to experience the joy of flying only by yourself as it is made just for one.........

Posted by: Jim      Permalink         Source

July 12, 2006, 9:52 PM CT

Brain-computer Helps Paralyzed Patients

How can we make a paralyzed person perform actions that he or she wants to do? Technology is now coming to aid people who were paralyzed for long time.

People with long-standing, severe paralysis can generate signals in the area of the brain responsible for voluntary movements. These signals can be detected, recorded, routed out of the brain to a computer and converted into actions, enabling a paralyzed patient to perform basic tasks.

The results of the clinical trial evaluating this possibility are published in the latest issued of Nature. In this study, the first patient, Matthew Nagle, a 25-year-old Massachusetts man with a severe spinal cord injury, has been paralyzed from the neck down since 2001. After having the BrainGate sensor implanted on the surface of his brain at Rhode Island Hospital in June 2004, he learned to control a computer cursor simply by thinking about moving it.

During 57 sessions, from July 2004 to April 2005, at New England Sinai Hospital and Rehabilitation Center, Nagle learned to open simulated e-mail, draw circular shapes using a paint program on the computer and play a simple video game, "neural Pong," using only his thoughts. He could change the channel and adjust the volume on a television, even while conversing. He was ultimately able to open and close the fingers of a prosthetic hand and use a robotic limb to grasp and move objects. Despite a decline in neural signals after 6.5 months, Nagle remained an active participant in the trial and continued to aid the clinical team in producing valuable feedback concerning the BrainGate technology.........

Posted by: Kevin      Permalink         Source

July 11, 2006, 11:43 PM CT

Chemists To Produce Faster Computers

Experts have been working for a number of years to understand how to work with electronic material produced on an increasingly small scale. In the emerging field of nano-science and nano-technologies it is important for researchers to be able to control the structure and bonding of molecules that are used in creating small scale electronic components for products such as computers.

Researchers at Liverpool have succeeded in imaging and forming a unique bond between a single gold atom and a single organic molecule called a pentacene. They managed to bind the atom to the pentacene and take images of rearrangements of the electrons participating in the formation of the chemical bond.

The team selected the pentacene as it is a special class of molecule that has qualities of particular use in molecular electronics. The gold atom is a metal atom that attracts an extra electron.

Professor Mats Persson, from the University's Department of Chemistry said: "This new experiment allows us to control the arrangement and shape of chemical bonds and to gain new insight into making contact with a single molecule with potential importance for molecular electronics. There will come a time when electronic material will become so small that we will need to control the structure down to the atomic scale and the chemical bonds between single molecules and atoms.........

Posted by: Sarah      Permalink         Source

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