ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• Searching for dark energy with neutrons: With neutrons, scientists can now look for dark energy in the lab
• Making new materials an atomic layer at a time
• Ant colonies help evacuees in disaster zones
• Researchers propose network-based evaluation tool to assess relief operations feasibility
• Global scientific team 'visualizes' a new crystallization process
• Augmented reality: Bringing history and the future to life
• Relieving electric vehicle range anxiety with improved batteries
• Computer software analyzing facial expressions accurately predicts student test performance
• Scientists achieve first direct observations of excitons in motion
• A small connection with big implications: Wiring up carbon-based electronics
• Potential use of Google Glass in surgical settings
• A study in scarlet: Hot newborn stars formed out of the clouds
• Futuristic robots allow doctors to examine patients from anywhere
• New Fusion Technology Increases Prostate Cancer Detection Accuracy to 97 Percent

Searching for dark energy with neutrons: With neutrons, scientists can now look for dark energy in the lab Posted: 16 Apr 2014 10:33 AM PDT It does not always take a huge accelerator to do particle physics: First results from a low energy, table top alternative takes validity of Newtonian gravity down by five orders of magnitude and narrows the potential properties of the forces and particles that may exist beyond it by more than one hundred thousand times. Gravity resonance spectroscopy is so sensitive that it can now be used to search for Dark Matter and Dark Energy.

Making new materials an atomic layer at a time Posted: 16 Apr 2014 08:27 AM PDT Researchers have shown the ability to grow high quality, single-layer materials one on top of the other using chemical vapor deposition. This highly scalable technique, often used in the semiconductor industry, can produce new materials with unique properties that could be applied to solar cells, ultracapacitors for energy storage, or advanced transistors for energy efficient electronics, among many other applications.

Ant colonies help evacuees in disaster zones Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:16 AM PDT An escape route mapping system based on the behavior of ant colonies could give evacuees a better chance of reaching safe harbor after a natural disaster or terrorist attack by building a map showing the shortest routes to shelters and providing regular updates of current situations such as fires, blocked roads or other damage via the smart phones of emergency workers and those caught up in the disaster.

Researchers propose network-based evaluation tool to assess relief operations feasibility Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:16 AM PDT The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction reported that disasters have affected around 2.9 billion people worldwide from 2000-2012- killing more than a million, and damaging around 1.7 trillion US dollars in estimates. Moreover, natural disasters and their damages have been documented to occur with increasing intensity. Given the staggering numbers, effective disaster preparedness and relief response plans is compelling, especially considering the fact that natural disasters are usually unpredictable and damage cannot be avoided. Scientists have now presented a model that looks into the logistics of disaster relief using open data and tools and measures developed in the field of network science.

Global scientific team 'visualizes' a new crystallization process Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:16 AM PDT By combining a synchrotron's bright X-ray beam with high speed X-ray cameras, scientists shot a 'movie' showing how organic molecules form into crystals. This is a first. Their new techniques will improve our understanding of crystal packing and should help lead to better electronic devices as well as pharmaceuticals -- indeed any product whose properties depend on precisely controlling crystallization.

Augmented reality: Bringing history and the future to life Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:14 AM PDT Have you ever wished you had a virtual time machine that could show you how your street looked last century? Or have you wanted to see how your new furniture might look, before you've even bought it? Thanks to new research you can now do just that.

Relieving electric vehicle range anxiety with improved batteries Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:13 AM PDT A new nanomaterial called a metal organic framework could extend the lifespan of lithium-sulfur batteries, which could be used to increase the driving range of electric vehicles. Researchers added the powder, a kind of nanomaterial called a metal organic framework, to the battery's cathode to capture problematic polysulfides that usually cause lithium-sulfur batteries to fail after a few charges. During lab tests, a lithium-sulfur battery with the new MOF cathode maintained 89 percent of its initial power capacity after 100 charge-and discharge cycles.

Computer software analyzing facial expressions accurately predicts student test performance Posted: 16 Apr 2014 07:13 AM PDT Real-time engagement detection technology that processes facial expressions can perform with accuracy comparable to that of human observers, according to new research. The study used automatic expression recognition technology to analyze students' facial expressions on a frame-by-frame basis and estimate their engagement level. The study also revealed that engagement levels were a better predictor of students' post-test performance than the students' pre-test scores.

Scientists achieve first direct observations of excitons in motion Posted: 16 Apr 2014 06:08 AM PDT A quasiparticle called an exciton -- responsible for the transfer of energy within devices such as solar cells, LEDs, and semiconductor circuits -- has been understood theoretically for decades. But exciton movement within materials has never been directly observed. Now scientists have achieved that feat, imaging excitons' motions directly. This could enable research leading to significant advances in electronics, they say, as well as a better understanding of natural energy-transfer processes, such as photosynthesis.

A small connection with big implications: Wiring up carbon-based electronics Posted: 16 Apr 2014 06:05 AM PDT Carbon-based nanostructures such as nanotubes, graphene sheets, and nanoribbons are unique building blocks showing versatile nanomechanical and nanoelectronic properties. These materials which are ordered in the nanoscale, that is, in the dimension of a millionth of millimeter, are promising candidates to envision applications in nanoscale devices, ranging from energy conversion to nano-electronic transistors.

Potential use of Google Glass in surgical settings Posted: 16 Apr 2014 06:04 AM PDT A new article shows the potential applications for Google Glass in the surgical setting, particularly in relation to training. Personal portable information technology is advancing at a breathtaking speed. Google has recently introduced Glass, a device that is worn like conventional glasses, but that combines a computerized central processing unit, touchpad, display screen, high-definition camera, microphone, bone-conduction transducer, and wireless connectivity.

A study in scarlet: Hot newborn stars formed out of the clouds Posted: 16 Apr 2014 06:04 AM PDT An area of the southern sky, in the constellation of Centaurus (The Centaur), is home to many bright nebulae, each associated with hot newborn stars that formed out of the clouds of hydrogen gas. The intense radiation from the stellar newborns excites the remaining hydrogen around them, making the gas glow in the distinctive shade of red typical of star-forming regions.

Futuristic robots allow doctors to examine patients from anywhere Posted: 14 Apr 2014 02:21 PM PDT A fleet of telemedicine robots to improve efficiency and patient care is being deployed to physicians, who will use them to examine patients remotely. Using a laptop, tablet or smartphone, doctors are now able to interact and perform their jobs in ways not previously possible. They can see, hear, be heard and move around in any remote facility, including being able to visually examine patients without being physically present.

New Fusion Technology Increases Prostate Cancer Detection Accuracy to 97 Percent Posted: 14 Apr 2014 01:08 PM PDT A powerful new tool for visualizing and monitoring the prostate in men who have high prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and in detecting prostate cancer more accurately is now available in some American hospitals. The new technology combines or "fuses" magnetic resonance (MR) and ultrasound images uses electromagnetic tracking/guidance, similar to your car's GPS system. A tiny tracking sensor is attached to an ultrasound probe and generates a small, localized electromagnetic field that helps determine the location and orientation of the biopsy device.

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