Science Scanner: Chemistry Nobel Prize Winner Announced
The winner of the Nobel Prize in chemistry was announced this morning in Stockholm. Daniel Shechtman of Technion, the Israel Institute of Technology, in Haifa, Israel, won for his 1982 discovery of quasicrystals. Quasicrystals are unusual materials which have some of the properties of a regular crystal, but have a more elaborate and complex structure […]
Science Scanner: Scientists Find Fried-egg Nebula Which Dwarfs the Sun
Astronomers have found nebulae that resemble a horse’s head, a check mark, a crab, an owl and a fried egg. New pictures of a hyper-giant star, formally known as IRAS 17163-3907, show it’s surrounded by a huge double shell. The star and its shells resemble an egg white around a yolky center, so University of […]
Recording Dreams
Imagine waking up from a vivid, wonderful dream that you can play back for others just like a video. Recent work by California researchers could pave the way to reproduce and play back the movies in our minds that is, our dreams and memories. Members of the research team at the University of California, Berkeley […]
Intelligent T-Shirt Monitors Patient’s Vital Signs, Movements
Spanish scientists have developed a so-called “intelligent t-shirt,” which can wirelessly monitor and record a patient’s vital signs. But that’s not all, say researchers at Carlos III University in Madrid. This “intelligent” t-shirt can also locate and track patients within the closed spaces of the health care facility, even going so far as to determine […]
Lifelong Musicians Hear Better Than the Rest of Us
Lifelong musicians are less likely to experience age-related hearing problems than non-musicians, according to a new Canadian study. The National Institutes of Health says one-third of Americans between 65 and 74 has hearing problems, as do half of those who are 85 and older. Among the hearing problems many older people experience is difficulty understanding […]
OUCH! Developing a Machine that Measures Pain
“Would you describe your pain as being sharp, aching, or throbbing, in nature or do you feel pressure?” “On a scale of one to 10, how much pain would you say you’re experiencing right now?” That subjective quiz has pretty much been the method doctors have used for years to determine the kind and severity […]
Science Scanner: Humanoid Robot Wakes Up in Space
After snoozing for a couple of months in a storage bag aboard the International Space Station, Robonaut 2 (R2) finally woke up in space for the first time this past Monday. Back in February, when the space shuttle Discovery took off on its final mission, we had a piece on our radio show about some […]
Science Scanner: Jodie Foster’s Real-Life Search for ET
Oscar-winning actress Jodie Foster is blending fiction with reality in her effort to jump-start the real-life search for extra terrestrial intelligence. Foster starred in “Contact”, the movie adaptation of a book by the late Carl Sagan. In the 1997 movie, she played Eleanor Arroway, a gifted scientist who becomes the director of a project dedicated to […]
Study: It’s OK to Be Fat
Despite current conventional wisdom to the contrary, a new study suggests that being fat can actually be good for you. Obese people, who are otherwise healthy, can live just as long as those who are thinner, and are less likely to die of cardiovascular causes, according to the study from Toronto’s York University, The WHO […]
Natural Protein Could Reduce Brain Damage Caused by Stroke
California scientists have found that a protein, which occurs naturally in the body, might reduce brain damage caused by a stroke. Stroke is the world’s second leading killer, responsible for almost 10 percent of all deaths worldwide in 2005, according to the World Health Organization. Eighty five percent of those deaths occur in low and […]