In almost 20 years of research, it has been the home of some of the most daring ideas to aid exploration: space elevators, crops that could grow on Mars and a shield to protect our planet from global warming. But now Nasa's Institute for Advanced Concepts (Niac) has fallen victim to a very down-to-earth problem - a lack of money.
The US space agency is set to close its futuristic ideas factory as part of a cost-cutting exercise which it hopes will help pay for ambitious plans to explore the moon and Mars. Bobby Mitchell, who works at Niac's headquarters in Atlanta, told the Guardian: "From what I understand, Nasa are out of money. We haven't got an official notice yet but we have heard from Nasa that they are going to discontinue funding."
Science & Technology
Scientists have traditionally relied upon indirect data gathering methods to study climate in the Earth's past, such as drilling ice cores in Greenland and Antarctica. Such samples of accumulated snow and ice drilled from deep within ice sheets or glaciers contain trapped air bubbles whose composition can provide a picture of past climate conditions. Now, however, a group of NASA and university scientists has found a convincing link between long-term solar and climate variability in a unique and unexpected source: directly measured ancient water level records of the Nile, Earth's longest river.
Work on Brain-Machine Interface (think monkey controlling a joystick with its thoughts) is old news, but a patent granted earlier this month underscores researchers' confidence that a broader set of military applications is possible: like controlling weapons with your mind.
It's official: Solar minimum has arrived. Sunspots have all but vanished. Solar flares are nonexistent. The sun is utterly quiet.
Like the quiet before a storm.
This week researchers announced that a storm is coming--the most intense solar maximum in fifty years.
Like the quiet before a storm.
This week researchers announced that a storm is coming--the most intense solar maximum in fifty years.
There's a new comet in the southern hemisphere: Comet Lovejoy (C/2007 E2). Terry Lovejoy of Australia discovered it on March 15th using, remarkably, not a telescope but only an off-the-shelf digital camera. The green comet is too dim to see with the naked eye, but it is a nice target for backyard telescopes. After five days of monitoring, the comet's orbit is now known with some accuracy and it is possible to make predictions about Comet Lovejoy's future movements and brightness. Details.
A man who won damages of £750 after he was sent a single unsolicited email urged other people yesterday to "take the spammers to court".
Gordon Dick launched a civil case against an internet company after it sent him an unwanted email on an address that was known only to one company.
Gordon Dick launched a civil case against an internet company after it sent him an unwanted email on an address that was known only to one company.
A DNA test of a 500-year-old strand of hair may help to solve one of the great mysteries of history - the fate of the little princes in the Tower - according to a student.
While skeletons thought to be Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury were found in the tower in 1674, an Essex University doctoral student is set to determine their authenticity by testing hair from the princes' niece.
By using some of Mary Tudor's hair that was found in a locket, John Ashdown-Hill plans on matching its mitochondrial DNA - that from the power packs of cells, mitochondria - to that of the skeletons.
While skeletons thought to be Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury were found in the tower in 1674, an Essex University doctoral student is set to determine their authenticity by testing hair from the princes' niece.
By using some of Mary Tudor's hair that was found in a locket, John Ashdown-Hill plans on matching its mitochondrial DNA - that from the power packs of cells, mitochondria - to that of the skeletons.
Findings could lead to new protections from radiation exposure.
Recent discoveries by researchers at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) could lead to new avenues of exploration for radioprotection in diverse settings. Michael J. Daly, Ph.D., an associate professor in USU's Department of Pathology, and his colleagues have uncovered evidence pointing to the mechanism through which the extremely resilient bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans protects itself from high doses of ionizing radiation (IR). The results of the recent study, titled "Protein Oxidation Implicated as the Primary Determinant of Bacterial Radioresistance" were published in the March 20 edition of PLoS Biology.
These discoveries likely will cause a shift in D. radiodurans research, changing the focus from DNA damage and repair toward a potent form of protein protection. These findings point to new avenues of exploration for radioprotection, which could eventually influence how individuals are treated for exposure to chronic or acute doses of radiation; could lead to ways to protect cancer patients from the toxic effects of radiation therapy; and may prove significant in efforts to contain toxic runoff from radioactive Cold War waste sites.
Recent discoveries by researchers at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) could lead to new avenues of exploration for radioprotection in diverse settings. Michael J. Daly, Ph.D., an associate professor in USU's Department of Pathology, and his colleagues have uncovered evidence pointing to the mechanism through which the extremely resilient bacterium Deinococcus radiodurans protects itself from high doses of ionizing radiation (IR). The results of the recent study, titled "Protein Oxidation Implicated as the Primary Determinant of Bacterial Radioresistance" were published in the March 20 edition of PLoS Biology.
These discoveries likely will cause a shift in D. radiodurans research, changing the focus from DNA damage and repair toward a potent form of protein protection. These findings point to new avenues of exploration for radioprotection, which could eventually influence how individuals are treated for exposure to chronic or acute doses of radiation; could lead to ways to protect cancer patients from the toxic effects of radiation therapy; and may prove significant in efforts to contain toxic runoff from radioactive Cold War waste sites.
A new study by researchers at the Center for Mass Destruction Defense (CMADD) at the University of Georgia details the catastrophic impact a nuclear attack would have on American cities.
The study, which the authors said was the most advanced and detailed simulation published in open scientific literature, highlights the inability of the nation's current medical system to handle casualties from a nuclear attack. It also suggests what the authors said are much needed yet relatively simple interventions that could save tens of thousands of lives.
"The likelihood of a nuclear weapon attack in an American city is steadily increasing, and the consequences will be overwhelming" said Cham Dallas, CMADD director and professor in the UGA College of Pharmacy. "So we need to substantially increase our preparation."
The study, which the authors said was the most advanced and detailed simulation published in open scientific literature, highlights the inability of the nation's current medical system to handle casualties from a nuclear attack. It also suggests what the authors said are much needed yet relatively simple interventions that could save tens of thousands of lives.
"The likelihood of a nuclear weapon attack in an American city is steadily increasing, and the consequences will be overwhelming" said Cham Dallas, CMADD director and professor in the UGA College of Pharmacy. "So we need to substantially increase our preparation."
Scientists' inability to follow the whereabouts of cells injected into the human body has long been a major drawback in developing effective medical therapies. Now, researchers at Johns Hopkins have developed a promising new technique for noninvasively tracking where living cells go after they are put into the body. The new technique, which uses genetically encoded cells producing a natural contrast that can be viewed using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), appears much more effective than present methods used to detect injected biomaterials.
Described in the February edition of Nature Biotechnology, the method was developed by a team of researchers from Johns Hopkins' Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, the Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering, and the F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore.
In their study, the researchers used a synthetic gene, called a reporter gene, which was engineered to have a high proportion of the amino acid lysine, which is especially rich in accessible hydrogen atoms. Because MRI detects energy-produced shifts in hydrogen atoms, when the "new" gene was introduced into animal cells and then "pelted" with radiofrequency waves from the MRI, it became readily visible. Using the technique as a proof of principle, the researchers were able to detect transplanted tumor cells in animal brains.
Described in the February edition of Nature Biotechnology, the method was developed by a team of researchers from Johns Hopkins' Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, the Hopkins Institute for Cell Engineering, and the F.M. Kirby Research Center for Functional Brain Imaging at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore.
In their study, the researchers used a synthetic gene, called a reporter gene, which was engineered to have a high proportion of the amino acid lysine, which is especially rich in accessible hydrogen atoms. Because MRI detects energy-produced shifts in hydrogen atoms, when the "new" gene was introduced into animal cells and then "pelted" with radiofrequency waves from the MRI, it became readily visible. Using the technique as a proof of principle, the researchers were able to detect transplanted tumor cells in animal brains.
