A bionic device the size of a pencil eraser — the labor of 20 years for a group of visionary Hub doctors and scientists — is offering hope that some forms of blindness could be alleviated within a few years. The Boston Retinal Implant Project, partially based at the VA Medical Center in Jamaica Plain, is one of 22 programs around the world working to restore vision to the degenerative blind. Their work: a bio-electronic implant that delivers images to the brain via a connector the width of a human hair
It might not look like much, but a single strand of your hair is now enough for forensic scientists to work out where you live. The new isotopic analysis technique could prove invaluable for criminal investigations
Irish researchers have developed ultra tiny light emitting diodes (LEDs) that consume less than a nanoamp of power, allowing such LEDs that produce light for more than 80 years on a watch size battery
The Encyclopedia of Life opened up to the public today with its first 30,000 pages in place — and promptly crumbled in the face of public interest. Only 25 exemplar
pages on the site are fully fleshed out to the extent scientists hope eventually to attain for all species; the other few tens of thousands are expanded placeholders. The project hopes to begin taking input from citizen-scientists late this year — via Slashdot
A material that is able to self-repair even when it is sliced in two has been invented by French researchers. The as-yet-unnamed material — a form of artificial rubber — is made from vegetable oil and a component of urine
Sticky bandages inspired by geckos’ feet could soon be used to seal wounds and close surgeon’s cuts. Since the bandages would dissolve harmlessly within the body, they could also replace stitches and sutures. Geckos can walk on walls thanks to nanoscopic bristles, called setae, on the bottom of each foot. Setae produce an intermolecular attraction allowing the gecko’s foot to stick to almost any surface
Scientists have found a way to boost an organism’s natural anti-virus defences — effectively making its cells immune to flu and other potential killers. The process cannot be carried out in human cells — but it could potentially aid the development of effective new anti-viral therapies. It works by stimulating production of the protein interferon, the cell’s first line of defence against viruses
What do you get when you combine the innovation of MagLev technology with solar power, hydrogen fuel, and a futuristic aesthetic? The Interstate Traveler Hydrogen Super Highway, a ground-breaking solar powered, hydrogen-fueled, zero emission mass transit system that would carry everything from people to cars in sustainable style and carbon neutral function. The construction is set to begin this year, and would connect Ann Arbor and Detroit
For ten years, skeptic magician James Randi has offered a million dollars to anyone who can show, under proper observing conditions, evidence of any paranormal, supernatural, or occult power or event
. He’s just announced that the James Randi Educational Foundation is discontinuing the Million-Dollar Challenge two years from now. The money will be freed, he says, to generally add to our flexibility
and enable the group to do many more projects
— via Boing Boing
The tattoo of the future may be good for your health rather than just your image. German scientists say that work on mice showed that tattooing was a more effective way to deliver a new generation of experimental DNA vaccines than standard injections into muscle. Using fragments of DNA to stimulate an immune response is seen as a promising way of making better vaccines for everything from flu to cancer
Pentagon-backed researchers want the prosthetics to feel like real limbs, so they’re creating patches of synthetic skin that’ll provide direct feedback to the brain
Indiana University researchers are studying a ground-breaking theory that young children are able to learn large groups of words rapidly by data-mining
Scientists in Finland said they had replaced a 65-year-old patient’s upper jaw with a bone transplant cultivated from stem cells isolated from his own fatty tissue and grown inside his abdomen. Researchers said on Friday the breakthrough opened up new ways to treat severe tissue damage and made the prospect of custom-made living spares parts for humans a step closer to reality
A new chip uses so little power, it could enable sensors, communication devices and other gadgets that run on body heat and movement alone. The chip uses 70 percent less voltage than current chip technologies. It could lead to an order-of-magnitude increase in energy efficiency for electronics in the next five years
A new species of mammal has been discovered in the mountains of Tanzania. The bizarre-looking creature, dubbed Rhynochocyon udzungwensis, is a type of giant elephant shrew, or sengi. The cat-sized animal looks like a cross between a miniature antelope and a small anteater
A team of scientists at Stanford University has tracked the movement of carbon nanotubes through the digestive systems of mice. They’ve determined that the nanotubes do not exhibit any toxicity in the mice, and are safely expelled after delivering their payload. As a result, the study paves the way toward future applications of nanotubes in the treatment of illnesses — via Slashdot
Scientists at a British biotech company said they have evidence that their genetically modified mosquitoes, which are programmed for sudden, early death, can control the spread of dengue fever
A new report shows some populations of tasmanian devils may have developed resistance to the deadly facial tumour disease. In parts of Tasmania up to 90 per cent of the devil population has been wiped out by a contagious cancer-like facial tumour disease
Bionic Contact Lens May Lead to Overlay Displays
A University of Washington researcher has developed a contact lens including circuitry and a matrix of LEDs. Although not yet a working prototype, this may be a foundation for terminator/robocop style overlay displays in which computer graphics could be superimposed on your normal vision. ‘Building the lenses was a challenge because materials that are safe for use in the body, such as the flexible organic materials used in contact lenses, are delicate. Manufacturing electrical circuits, however, involves inorganic materials, scorching temperatures and toxic chemicals. Researchers built the circuits from layers of metal only a few nanometers thick, about one thousandth the width of a human hair, and constructed light-emitting diodes one third of a millimeter across — via Slashdot
The darkest ever
substance known to science has been made in a US laboratory. The material was created from carbon nanotubes — sheets of carbon just one atom thick rolled up into cylinders. Researchers say it is the closest thing yet to the ideal black material, which absorbs light perfectly at all angles and over all wavelengths. The discovery is expected to have applications in the fields of electronics and solar energy
RSS – Posts