Feature Channels: Technology

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Applied scientists at the University of Arkansas as Little Rock are developing a "smart" cane to give the blind a better tool to navigate their environments.

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Computers might one day recycle part of their own waste heat, using a material being studied by researchers at Ohio State University.

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If drivers yak on cell phones and don’t hear instructions to turn left or right, they still can get directions from devices that are mounted on the steering wheel and pull the driver’s fingertips left or right, a University of Utah study found.

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A team of University of Iowa researchers has developed a new tool that detects potential vandalism on Wikipedia and can help improve the accuracy of the online encyclopedia's entries.

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“Just like people buy a car, I envision that in five to 10 years, people will buy an assistive robot that will be cheaper or about the same cost as a car."

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A paternity test for source code detects illegally copied software.

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Although the range of frequencies available for mobile broadband is limited, freeing more of these airwaves is tricky--but possible.

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How does space research benefit humans on Earth? Improved health care. Engineers are developing a system that provides an accurate patient history, assists in treatment and helps caregivers be more efficient when providing medical care. Even though the LTM/iRevive system is being developed for space use, it will be beneficial in many settings on Earth.

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Next-generation high-density storage devices may keep more than 70 times the contents of the entire U.S. Library of Congress on a single disc -- but only if that data can be written quickly enough. In the Journal of Applied Physics, researchers in China have demonstrated a way to record onto ferromagnetic films thirty times faster than today's technologies.

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A device developed by Sandia National Laboratories researchers that shoots a blade of water capable of penetrating steel is headed to U.S. troops in Afghanistan to help them disable deadly improvised explosive devices, or IEDs — the No. 1 killer and threat to troops in Afghanistan, according to the Pentagon.

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NC State recently received a four-year, $3.5 million grant to explore using artificial intelligence as a learning tool inside fourth- and fifth-grade science classrooms. Artificial intelligence is the science of giving computers human-like abilities to understand, plan, communicate, perceive, etc.

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An information systems researcher at the University of Arkansas has found that peripheral developers – those outside the core development team – make significant contributions to product quality, especially on projects beyond the design phase. Results also indicated that peripheral developers significantly influence product awareness and adoption.

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Researchers at NIST have found theoretical evidence of a new way to generate the high-frequency waves used in modern communication devices such as cell phones using exotic 'soliton' waves in magnetism. The technique might enable wireless technology that would be more secure and resistant to interference than conventional devices.

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A Florida State University engineering professor’s innovative research with nanomaterials could one day lead to a new generation of hydrogen fuel cells that are less expensive, smaller, lighter and more durable — advantages that might make them a viable option for widespread use in automobiles and in military and industrial technology.

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Using a home’s electrical wiring as a giant copper antenna enables extremely low-power wireless sensors that run for decades on a single watch battery. The device could be used for low-cost medical monitoring or home sensing systems.

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The San Diego Supercomputer Center and Cooperative Association for Internet Data Analysis (CAIDA) at the University of California, San Diego, in a collaboration with researchers from Universitat de Barcelona in Spain and the University of Cyprus, have created the first geometric “atlas” of the Internet as part of a project to prevent our most ubiquitous form of communication from collapsing within the next decade or so.

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Researchers have published what is believed to be the first detailed examination of robot deception. They developed algorithms that allow a robot to determine whether it should deceive and designed techniques that help the robot select the best deceptive strategy to avoid getting caught.

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Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have developed new software that greatly improves the speed at which scientists can analyze RNA sequencing data. The software, known as Myrna, uses “cloud computing,” an Internet-based method of sharing computer resources. Faster, cost-effective analysis of gene expression could be a valuable tool in understanding the genetic causes of disease.

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A recent Columbus State University study shows that students who consistently use laptops with interaction software to enhance or supplement their classroom notes outperform their counterparts.

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Protecting helicopters in combat from heat-seeking missiles is the goal of new laser technology created at the University of Michigan and Omni Sciences, Inc., which is a U-M spin-off company.

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Using two of the planet's largest, creative online communities as their laboratory, two Indiana University Bloomington researchers hope to understand how the inner workings of such massive, networked collaborations could benefit scientists.

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The rare book, “India Illustrated” is now digitally preserved and available online for students, historians and others around the world interested in the social, economic and political history of India.

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Students, faculty and alumni with an iPhone can now find the precise arrival time for a Tech Trolley, reserve a library book and even plan a meal down to a nutritional nugget with Georgia Tech’s new student-designed iPhone app.

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Measurements taken at NIST may help physicists develop a clearer understanding of high-temperature superconductors, whose behavior remains in many ways mysterious decades after their discovery. A new copper-based compound exhibits properties never before seen in a superconductor and could be a step toward solving part of the mystery.

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Researchers at NIST have demonstrated a micro-miniaturized device that can make complex viscosity measurements--critical data for a wide variety of fields dealing with things that have to flow--on sample sizes as small as a few nanoliters.

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A new smartphone chip prototype under development at the University of California, San Diego will improve smartphone efficiency by making use of “dark silicon” – the underused transistors in modern microprocessors. On August 23, UC San Diego computer scientists presented GreenDroid, the new smartphone chip prototype at the HotChips symposium in Palo Alto, CA.

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A new partnership in the Southeast U.S. between education and industry will be on the ground floor of what officials call a growth "tsunami."

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Technology developed at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory that extends the life of light-emitting diode lamps has been licensed to LED North America.

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Student research teams are preparing for the 2012 international autonomous vehicle competition, which will require nabbing an unsecured USB flash drive kept in a remote and highly secured office. The vehicle must enter through a broken window, and then decide how to proceed once inside the building.

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Scientists in the United Kingdom are reporting potential new uses for an unusual substance known as “dry water,” which resembles powdered sugar. The powder could provide a convenient and efficient way to absorb and store carbon dioxide, the major greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming, the scientists said. Their study is scheduled for presentation in August at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Boston.

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Sikorsky Aircraft's X2 is capable of vertical takeoff and landing and can also achieve high-speed flight--a tricky technical feat that stymied generations of helicopter designers.

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With several companies offering telepresence robots to act as people's proxies at the office, IEEE Spectrum sets out to determine if this is the future of work.

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Scientists are reporting development of new soy-based glues that use a substance in soy milk and tofu and could mean a new generation of more eco-friendly furniture, cabinets, flooring and other wood products. Their study is scheduled for presentation in August at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS) in Boston.

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In a step toward more efficient, smaller and higher-definition display screens, a University of Michigan professor has developed a new type of color filter made of nano-thin sheets of metal with precisely spaced gratings.

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Chinese scientists have shown that magnetic memory, logic and sensor cells can be made faster and more energy efficient by using an electric, not magnetic, field to flip the magnetization of the sensing layer only about halfway, rather than completely to the opposite direction -- as described in the Journal of Applied Physics.

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Crafting a fragrance for detergents that leaves laundry smelling clean and fresh. Developing a room freshener, scented oil, or scented candle that whispers “cool spring air.” Giving toothpaste or mouthwash a refreshing aftertaste that lingers and lingers. The process for putting the smell that sells into thousands consumer products is much like composing a symphony, according to maestro fragrance designer Michael Papas, who spoke here today at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS).

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Scientists reported progress today in using a common virus to develop improved materials for high-performance, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that could be woven into clothing to power portable electronic devices. They discussed development of the new materials for the battery’s cathode, or negative electrode, at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS), being held here this week.

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Professors and a Ph.D. student from UALR --the University of Arkansas at Little Rock -- developed a new model to manage the "vast ocean" of data being generated by users of growing social websites. The model allows Internet sites to automatically adjust privacy needs of consumers or organizations to the context in which the data is accessed.

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Find cleaning those tables and dressers a chore or a bore? Imagine dusting objects spread out over 50 footballs fields. That’s the problem facing companies that deploy large-scale solar power installations, particularly in dust prone areas. One solution — self-dusting solar panels — could improve the efficiency of this emerging technology while making maintenance less costly and less cumbersome. These developments in self-cleaning solar panels were reported by scientists from Massachusetts here today at the 240th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

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In September, leading scientists across several disciplines will gather for the next Kavli Futures Symposium to discuss what science needs from computing. In advance of this meeting, four of the participants discuss those needs, how current computing advances are impacting research, and how the future of computing is looking extreme and green -- moving closer to how the brain computes.

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A modified version of the RoboCrane®, a unique floating platform developed by manufacturing research engineers at NIST, will be helping cleanup operations at the destroyed reactor of the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant in northern Ukraine.

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Computers are everywhere these days – even on surfboards. University of California, San Diego mechanical engineering undergraduates outfitted a surfboard with a computer and accompanying sensors -- one step toward a structural engineering Ph.D. student’s quest to develop the science of surfboards.

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Each day, we exchange a mess of content through Facebook, Twitter, blogs, discussion boards and other online forums. How are companies and other organizations using our data? Rohini Srihari understands complicated concerns it raises.

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Scientists in Japan have recorded data at a density of 4 trillion bits per square inch, a world record for the experimental "ferroelectric" data storage method. As described the journal Applied Physics Letters, this density is about eight times the density of today's most advanced magnetic hard-disk drives.

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The basis for solar energy is absorbing light and then effectively disassociating electrical charges. University of Cambridge researchers report in the journal Applied Physics Letters that conjugated polymers are excellent materials for such a system, thanks to their light absorption and conduction properties.

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Researchers can now measure a laser’s power & spatial energy distribution at once by directing the beam onto a reusable glass target board GTRI designed. The new system will accelerate high-energy laser development & reduce the time required to make them operational for national security purposes.

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University of Washington engineers are developing the first device able to transmit American Sign Language over U.S. cellular networks. The tool is just completing its initial field test by participants in a UW summer program for deaf and hard-of-hearing students.

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Adults who have Internet access at home are much more likely to be in romantic relationships than adults without Internet access, according to research to be presented at the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.

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Working with National Science Foundation and Department of Energy grants, UIC earth and environmental sciences professor Katheryn Nagy is studying how mercury bonds with sulfur, how forest fires can affect it, and ultimately how using plants and peat can provide eco-friendly cleanup of mercury contamination.

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Purchasing a laptop computer has become a ritual for many new college students. But using a laptop often leads to posture problems, which can have serious long-term health consequences. UNC expert Dr. Kevin Carneiro explains how students can guard themselves from “laptop-itis” from orientation to final exams.