ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• Mathematician releases 2014 Major League Baseball projections
• New way to filter light: May provide first directional selectivity for light waves
• New guidance system could improve minimally invasive surgery
• Seasonal Arctic summer ice extent still hard to forecast, study says
• Controlling electron spins by light
• Scientists watch nanoparticles grow: Analysis allows tailoring materials for switchable windows and solar cells
• Online gaming augments players' social lives, study shows
• Hubble sees Mars-bound comet sprout multiple jets
• Ultra-thin light detectors: Metamaterials and quantum cascade structures combined for first time
• Data mining disaster: Computer technology can mine data from social media during disasters
• Record quantum entanglement of multiple dimensions: Two Schrödinger cats which could be alive, dead, or in 101 other states simultaneously
• Computing with slime: Logical circuits built using living slime molds
• Inspiring invention in primary school
• Electronic medication alerts designed with provider in mind reduce prescribing errors

Mathematician releases 2014 Major League Baseball projections Posted: 27 Mar 2014 11:24 AM PDT As Opening Day rapidly approaches for most Major League Baseball teams, a professor has prepared his annual MLB projections for the upcoming season.

New way to filter light: May provide first directional selectivity for light waves Posted: 27 Mar 2014 11:24 AM PDT Light waves can be defined by three fundamental characteristics: their color (or wavelength), polarization, and direction. While it has long been possible to selectively filter light according to its color or polarization, selectivity based on the direction of propagation has remained elusive. But now, for the first time, researchers have produced a system that allows light of any color to pass through only if it is coming from one specific angle; the technique reflects all light coming from other directions.

New guidance system could improve minimally invasive surgery Posted: 27 Mar 2014 09:36 AM PDT A computerized process that could make minimally invasive surgery more accurate and streamlined using equipment already common in the operating room has been developed by researchers.

Seasonal Arctic summer ice extent still hard to forecast, study says Posted: 27 Mar 2014 09:36 AM PDT Scientists analyzed 300 summer Arctic sea ice forecasts from 2008 to 2013 and found that forecasts are quite accurate when sea ice conditions are close to the downward trend that has been observed in Arctic sea ice for the last 30 years. However, forecasts are not so accurate when sea ice conditions are unusually higher or lower compared to this trend.

Controlling electron spins by light Posted: 27 Mar 2014 09:35 AM PDT Topological insulators are considered a very promising material class for the development of future electronic devices. A research team has discovered, how light can be used to alter the physical properties of the electrons in these materials.

Scientists watch nanoparticles grow: Analysis allows tailoring materials for switchable windows and solar cells Posted: 27 Mar 2014 08:16 AM PDT With DESY's X-ray light source PETRA III, scientists have observed the growth of nanoparticles live. The study shows how tungsten oxide nanoparticles are forming from solution. These particles are used for example for smart windows, which become opaque at the flick of a switch, and they are also used in particular solar cells.

Online gaming augments players' social lives, study shows Posted: 27 Mar 2014 08:15 AM PDT Online social behavior isn't replacing offline social behavior in the gaming community, new research shows. Instead, online gaming is expanding players' social lives. "Gamers aren't the antisocial basement-dwellers we see in pop culture stereotypes, they're highly social people," says the lead author of a paper. "This won't be a surprise to the gaming community, but it's worth telling everyone else. Loners are the outliers in gaming, not the norm."

Hubble sees Mars-bound comet sprout multiple jets Posted: 27 Mar 2014 08:15 AM PDT A new image of a comet at 353 million miles from Earth shows two jets of dust coming off the comet's nucleus in opposite directions.

Ultra-thin light detectors: Metamaterials and quantum cascade structures combined for first time Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:06 AM PDT A new, extremely thin kind of light detectors has been developed. Two very different technologies were combined for the first time: metamaterials and quantum cascade structures. Subtle interactions of electrons and light make them so valuable for technology: ultra-thin systems of semiconductor layers can turn electrical voltage into light. But they can also be used the other way around and serve as light detectors.

Data mining disaster: Computer technology can mine data from social media during disasters Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:06 AM PDT Computer technology that can mine data from social media during times of natural or other disaster could provide invaluable insights for rescue workers and decision makers, according to scientists.

Record quantum entanglement of multiple dimensions: Two Schrödinger cats which could be alive, dead, or in 101 other states simultaneously Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:06 AM PDT Scienitists have managed to create an entanglement of 103 dimensions with only two photons. The record had been established at 11 dimensions. The discovery could represent a great advance toward the construction of quantum computers with much higher processing speeds than current ones, and toward a better encryption of information.

Computing with slime: Logical circuits built using living slime molds Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:03 AM PDT A future computer might be a lot slimier than the solid silicon devices we have today. Researchers have revealed details of logic units built using living slime molds, which might act as the building blocks for computing devices and sensors.

Inspiring invention in primary school Posted: 27 Mar 2014 07:03 AM PDT Inspiring primary school age children to think of themselves as inventors and to devise novel solutions to the problems around them was the aim of an educational experiment. In their experiment they provided teachers and pupils with the technology -- voice recorders and video equipment -- with which to record their everyday environment and to help them home in on the various problems they face in their lives. The primary school class was not only keen to seek out problems but provided several fanciful and occasionally practical solutions.

Electronic medication alerts designed with provider in mind reduce prescribing errors Posted: 25 Mar 2014 08:32 AM PDT Changing how medication alerts are presented in electronic medical records resulted in safer prescribing, increased efficiency and reduced workload for health care providers who placed drug orders in a recent study. The study authors noted that good alert design may offer better cognitive support during busy patient encounters and may help providers extract information quickly, while a poor design may cause prescribers to prematurely dismiss alerts.

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