Wipro projects $905 million from IT services in Q3
By IANS
Bangalore : Wipro Ltd has projected $905 million (Rs.39.97 billion) from its global IT services and products business for the third quarter (Oct-Dec) of this fiscal (FY 2008).
In a notification to the stock exchanges here Friday, the IT bellwether said the robust guidance was based on the flagship IT division's performance in the second quarter (July-Sept) of this fiscal, which at $797 million was $20 million more than the projected $777 million.
Harmony module attached to International Space Station
By DPA
Washington : Two astronauts from the US space shuttle Discovery have completed the mission's first space walk at the International Space Station (ISS).
The two US citizens Scott Parazynski and Douglas Wheelock Friday installed the Harmony linking module, which is due to be used in December for docking the European space laboratory Columbus, in a temporary location outside the ISS.
They first prepared the module before crew inside the station used its robotic arm to move it into position.
Germany, India to develop jointly new-era technologies
By DPA
Berlin : Germany and India plan to jointly develop new technologies as part of a "new era" in their science cooperation, Germany's minister of science, Annette Schavan, said Monday.
She spoke just hours before Chancellor Angela Merkel was to land in India for a four-day visit.
Schavan is a member of the delegation accompanying the chancellor. During the visit, an agreement is to be signed to establish the German-Indian Science and Technology Centre, set to open next summer in Delhi.
DoT for subscriber-based spectrum allocation, operators clash
By IANS
New Delhi : Notwithstanding the strong protest of GSM operators, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has accepted its technical arm's proposal to allocate the scarce radio waves to all operators based on the number of subscribers.
The technical wing of DoT, Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC), in its report to DoT, has suggested that the subscriber-linked criteria for fresh spectrum allocation be raised by anywhere in between 2-15 times depending on the network.
EU, India plan corpus for nano-technology research
By IANS
New Delhi : India and the European Commission (EC), a governing body of the European Union (EU), will set up a corpus fund of euro 10 million (Rs.576.7 million) for research in nano-technology, a top EC official said here Wednesday.
"We are for a joint call, which will focus on collaborative research. The effort will receive support of about euro 5 million (Rs.288.4 million) from each party," EC director general (research) Jose M.S. Rodriguez told reporters.
Cars still drive China’s development-first strategy
By DPA
Beijing : Giant power plants belching out clouds of filthy coal smoke often spring to mind when people mention China's worsening air quality. But the exponential growth of the car industry over the past 10 years has also added enormously to the noxious mix of pollutants swirling across urban centres.
As hundreds of new vehicles take to China's roads every day, the government is left in something of a bind between enforcing new environmental policies and its long-term development of the economically vital auto industry.
Italian connection on the cards for Kerala’s Technopark
By IANS
Thiruvananthapuram : A delegation from Novara, one of the most industrially advanced cities in Italy, held discussions here Thursday for possible cooperation in IT between Novara and Technopark.
The Italian delegation included the mayor of Novara, Massimo Giordano, and four lawyers.
In his speech, Giordano suggested companies here and Novara should collaborate and work for mutual benefit.
He invited officials here to visit Novara for further talks.
Avoid diseases by exposing food to radiation: scientist
By V. Jagannathan, IANS
Chennai : The government should allow the generic use of irradiation technology - a process of exposing food to controlled radiations like gamma rays, X-rays, and accelerated electrons that kill harmful organisms - to prevent diseases and increase shelf life of food, says a top atomic scientist.
"The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act should be amended to allow irradiation of food products on a generic basis," Arun K. Sharma, head of the Food Technology Division of the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), told IANS here.
New device to help Parkinson’s disease patients
By DPA
Singapore : A portable, battery-powered device has been developed in Singapore to help people suffering from Parkinson's disease regain their walking rhythm, Ngee Ann Polytechnic said Saturday.
Physiotherapists from Singapore General Hospital worked with a team from the school's mechanical engineering department to develop the invention.
Parkinson's disease is a slow, degenerative disease that deprives sufferers of steady movement, leading to jerky small steps or freezing in narrow spaces, the team said. To take the next step, patients need a cue.
India launches Israeli ‘spy satellite’
By IANS
Sriharikota/Bangalore/Chennai : India's space agency ISRO Monday successfully placed an Israeli "spy satellite" in the polar orbit after a textbook launch and reaffirmed its position among the elite group of nations capable of commercial launches - with three more orders in the queue.
The 300-kg Israeli satellite, Tecsar, was launched as scheduled at 0915 IST (Indian Standard Time) using the `core alone' configuration of the polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV-C10), that is, the rocket without its usual six strap-on booster motors.
Chang’e-1 captures pictures of moon’s polar areas
By Xinhua
Beijing : China's first lunar probe, Chang'e-1, has successfully captured pictures of the moon's polar areas, Chinese officials said on Thursday.
The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense released on Thursday a picture of the moon's polar areas, the first-ever such picture taken by Chinese.
"We have obtained good quality pictures," said spokesman Pei Zhaoyu of China National Space Administration (CNSA).
IBS Software to open new centre in Bangalore
By IANS
Thiruvananthapuram : Kerala-based IBS Software Services, provider of new-generation IT solutions to the global travel, transportation and logistics (TTL) industry, plans to open a new development centre in Bangalore by next month.
"This has been on our cards for sometime now and we are opening (another centre) in Chennai in the next fiscal itself," IBS chief V.K. Mathews told IANS Wednesday.
The Bangalore centre would initially have 300 professionals but would be expanded soon, he said.
Authentic land data promised
By Xinhua
Beijing : A regulation has been introduced to ensure data from national land-use surveys are both accurate and authentic, so that macro-control measures are based on firm footings, a senior official said yesterday.
The regulation, which was approved by Premier Wen Jiabao on Feb. 7 and became effective the same day, is designed to ensure the validity of the surveys, which are held every 10 years to provide a record of land use, ownership and condition.
The surveys are funded by central and local governments.
SatNav Technologies launches new navigation solution
By IANS
Hyderabad : SatNav Technologies, a city-based IT products company, has added laptop and desktop navigation to its range of global positioning system (GPS) products, which are available under the brand SatGuide.
The company Monday announced the launch of its SatGuide turn-by-turn navigation and planning solution for laptops and desktops, focused on corporate houses.
"This is the first time in the country that such a solution is being launched," said a company statement here.
Trees, fungi set unique example in cooperation
By IANS
London : Over millennia, trees and fungi have developed a delicate interdependence that allows both to flourish in adverse conditions, according to a new study.
The study, by researchers at Ghent University, Belgium, also suggests that understanding this interdependence could help us monitor climate change, a university press release said.
Trees grow better and faster when certain specialised micro-organisms interact with their roots. One of them is Laccaria bicolour, a soil fungus that draws on the sugars in the roots.
China launching center says it’s getting prepared for Shenzhou VII
By Xinhua
Beijing : China's Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center is getting prepared for the Shenzhou VII spacewalk mission scheduled for late September and early October, said director of the center Zhang Yulin.
"Preparations for the mission are in full swing, and we're confident in its success," said Zhang, a deputy to the 11th National People's Congress, in an interview with Xinhua on Saturday.
U.S. probe produces three major findings about universe
By Xinhua
Washington : NASA, the U.S. space agency, released on Friday five years of data collected by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP), which include three major findings about the universe.
The probe got the new evidence that a sea of cosmic neutrinos permeates the early universe. According to the scientists' analysis, universe is awash in "a sea of cosmic neutrinos". Neutrinos made up a much larger part of the early universe than they do today.
Arianespace Sends Its First Mission To International Space Station.
By Bernama
Kuala Lumpur : Arianespace, the launcher of Malaysia's Measat-I & -II, successfully launched the European Space Agencys first ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle), dubbed Jules Verne ATV to the international space station on Sunday, March 9.
In a statement today, Arianespace said the mission marked Arianespaces first mission to the International Space Station (ISS).
The Guiana Space Center from where the mission was launched has now joined the select club of launch sites serving the ISS, along with Baikonur and the Kennedy Space Center (Cape Canaveral).
Real Death Star might blast Earth with death rays
By Xinhua
Beijing : A beautiful pinwheel in space might one day blast Earth with death rays, according to a report in Astrophysical Journal March quoted by media Tuesday.
The blazing spiral could destroy the world from thousands of light-years away, which is far more powerful than the moon-sized Death Star, which has to get close to a planet to blast it as we see in Star Wars.
Shuttle Endeavour blasts off from Cape Canaveral
By SPA
Cape Canaveral, Florida : Shuttle Endeavour and a crew of seven are on their way to the international space station, AP reported.
The space shuttle blasted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, early Tuesday morning to begin what is expected to be the longest space station mission ever. It is a 16-day voyage to build a two-armed robot and add a float-in closet for a future lab. Five spacewalks are planned.
Liftoff came in the middle of the night, and it was the first shuttle launch in darkness since 2006.
Russia fails to put U.S. satellite into target orbit
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russia failed to put a U.S. AMC-14 telecommunication satellite into its target orbit after a booster rocket malfunctioned during the launch early on Saturday, Russia's Federal Space Agency said.
At 2:28 a.m. Moscow time (23:28 GMT Friday), a few minutes after the Proton-M carrier rocket's launch from the Baikonur Space Center which Russia rents from Kazakhstan, the Breeze-M orbit insertion booster failed during its upper stage, putting the satellite into orbit much lower than required.
Saturn moon’s mysterious vapour plumes could be key to alien life
By DPA
Hamburg (Germany) : Scientists on NASA's Cassini mission are counting on the probe's next fly-by to provide them with possible clues to alien life following discovery of water vapour plumes on a moon of Saturn.
The spacecraft will zoom in on the moon Enceladus in March. Its closest approach will be at a mere 50 km from the surface and the altitude will increase to about 200 kilometres as the spacecraft passes through the plumes.
Cassini will sample the plumes directly and find out more about their composition, said German scientists who are monitoring the data.
Mercedes set for hydrogen drive in 2010
By DPA
Stuttgart : Mercedes has given the B-Class a design makeover with more economical engines and a special fuel-cell hydrogen drive version available in 2010, the car maker has announced.
The four-cylinder engines are up to seven percent more economical than the predecessor with exhaust emissions that undercut current European Union (EU) emission standards by as much as 90 percent, Mercedes said.
Sea salt worsens coastal air pollution: study
By IANS
Washington : When salty air and sunshine around busy ports mingle with industrial and shipping pollution, they aggravate the problem manifold, according to a study.
Emissions from marine vessels may be polluting the globe to a greater extent than hitherto suspected. The disturbing phenomenon substantially raises the levels of ground-level ozone and other pollutants in coastal areas
"This is a problem everywhere industrial pollution meets the ocean, as is the case in many of the largest cities around the world," said Hans Osthoff of university of Calgary.
Report: global space economy revenues reach $251 bln in 2007
By Xinhua
Colorado Springs, The United States : In 2007, global space economy registered a record-setting 251 billion U.S. dollars in revenues, according to a report released here on Tuesday by U.S. National Space Foundation.
Total global space industry revenues reached 251.16 billion in 2007, 11 percent increase from 2006, said "The Space Report 2008."
IBM to use ‘spintronics’ to increase computer memory capacity
By DPA
San Francisco : IBM announced a new kind of computer memory Friday that could increase storage capacity 100-fold.
Called "racetrack memory" the new storage devices would replace flash memory and hard disk drives in computers. The devices are based on a new branch of physics called "spintronics" that uses nanotechnology to manipulate the spin of electrons to create magnetic fields in which data can be stored.
Laser triggers electrical activity in thunderstorm
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists successfully triggered electrical activity for the first time by shooting pulses of laser light into thunderclouds from atop a New Mexico peak.
Engineering such strikes will permit scientists to evaluate and test lightning-sensitivity of airplanes and critical infrastructure like power lines.
Pulsed lasers represent a potentially powerful tool for such lightning because they can form a large number of plasma filaments that act like conducting wires extending into the thundercloud.
Powerful solar flares trigger sound waves
By Xinhua,
Beijing : Bursts of sound waves that ripple across the sun are caused by powerful solar flares, astronomers say.
The finding, which will be published in the May 1 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters, comes from data collected with the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), a joint venture between NASA and ESA.
Hubble finds young galaxies surprisingly crowded with stars
By Xinhua,
Washington : Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers say they have detected nine young galaxies in the early Universe, packed with improbable numbers of stars, according to a study published Tuesday.
Astronomers looking at galaxies in the Universe's distant past have discovered these nine galaxies, each weighing in at 200 billion times the mass of the Sun.
The galaxies, about 11 billion light years away, are a fraction of the size of today's grownup galaxies but contain approximately the same number of stars.
Indian-American scientist develops arsenic-resistant Bt rice
By IANS,
Washington : The presence of arsenic in the soil in parts of eastern India and Bangladesh has adversely affected rice production, as also the health of people who eat the contaminated rice.
Scientists now claim to have a solution to the problem: genetically engineered rice plants that resist intake of the toxin.
U.S., China space debris still orbiting Earth
By Xinhua,
Beijing : Debris from the U.S. intercept of a spy satellite in February and from China's anti-satellite test in Janaury 2007 is still orbiting Earth, according to a space debris expert.
T.S. Kelso's CelesTrak satellite tracking software shows some 15 pieces of the busted up USA 193 spysat are still flying around, although when the successful intercept was reported, estimates were that all pieces would re-enter Earth's atmosphere within 40 days.
A recent analysis shows the last piece of clutter will decay about 100 days post-intercept, Kelso reported.
ISRO eyes commercial launches to earn cash
By IANS,
Kolkata : After a string of successes, a confident Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is ready to offer its capacities on a commercial basis and ring in its cash registers, after meeting the domestic requirement that calls for four to five launches a year.
"ISRO launch vehicles are efficient, reliable and cost-effective. Our launch vehicles cost nearly 25 percent less than what international agencies demand," ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair Thursday said.
UN ecology experts look to new nature-given technologies
By DPA,
Bonn (Germany) : New technologies gleaned from observing nature are set to provide exciting applications in the decades ahead that will supersede current environmentally destructive practices, UN experts said Wednesday.
Ahmed Djoghlaf, general secretary of the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD), called on entrepreneurs to "wake up" to the new possibilities and to "work with nature, not against it."
Djoghlaf was speaking on the sidelines of the ninth conference of the parties to the CBD being held in the German city of Bonn.
Rat bones show first New Zealanders settled 700 years ago
By DPA,
Wellington : Humans first settled in New Zealand around the late 13th century and not more than 2,000 years ago as had been thought, according to research published Tuesday that used radiocarbon dating on rat bones.
The research in the US journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences rejected earlier radiocarbon dating suggesting the first migrants arrived about 200 BC.
Seaweed could help meet energy needs: Study
By IANS,
Washington : The humble seaweed holds the potential of not only countering climate change but also providing bio-fuels to tackle the growing energy crisis, according to a new study.
The large-scale cultivation of biofuels on land has serious environmental costs, including deforestation, water use and greenhouse gases - these are costs avoided by seaweed cultivation, reports Scidev.Net.
Asia’s first human DNA bank comes up in Lucknow
By IANS,
Lucknow : Asia's first -- and the world's second -- human DNA bank has been set up at the Biotech Park in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow district, said an official Wednesday.
"DNA Identification System (DIS) will be one of the most important functions of the DNA bank that will facilitate establishing identity of individuals within a few seconds," Biotech Park's CEO P.K. Seth told IANS.
The members of the DNA bank will receive a microchip based DNA card containing information of their fingerprints, and anthropological details, said Seth.
White stuff on Mars is ice: NASA
By DPA,
Washington : The white material on Mars uncovered by the robotic arm of the Phoenix probe is ice, scientists at the US space agency NASA have said.
"We have found proof that this hard bright material is really water ice and not some other substance," Peter Smith of the University of Arizona said in a transcript of a press briefing released late Friday.
Reducing household carbon footprint helps fight climate change
By IANS,
Washington : Like charity, the battle against global warming should also begin at home, according to a new study.
The study set out to establish that going green, recycling items of daily use and reducing your carbon footprint would be easier if a household's environmental impact is monitored.
The study, which enlisted 20 families to assess how well sustainable behaviour might be inculcated among householders, compared fuel, electricity, water costs and waste generation and recommended cost-effective steps to reduce consumption.
Polaris Software to enter real estate business
By IANS,
Chennai : Banking software company Polaris Software Lab Ltd has decided to get into the real estate business, subject to regulatory approvals.
A decision to this effect was taken by the company's board here Thursday, Polaris said in a stock exchange filing.
While Polaris executives were not available to comment on the diversification, sources close to the development told IANS that the company has some surplus land in Gurgaon near the national capital after building its software development centre.
Indian scientists evolve avalanche prediction system
By Richa Sharma, IANS,
New Delhi : In a boon for armed forces personnel deployed in high-altitude areas, defence scientists have developed a system for forecasting avalanches with maximum accuracy to enable corrective measures to be taken.
The system, developed by researchers of the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment (SASE), can predict any given day as an "avalanche day" or "non-avalanche day".
‘Spy aircraft’ that weighs just three grams
By IANS,
Amsterdam : Dutch engineers have developed a miniature remote-controlled aircraft that flies by flapping its wings like a dragonfly, has an on-board camera and weighs just three grams.
Delfly Micro, made by engineers at Delft University of Technology, can fly for approximately three minutes and has a maximum speed of five meters per second, reports Eurekalert.
‘Primates fast disappearing off the face of earth’
By IANS,
London : Humankind's closest kin in the animal world - monkeys, apes and other primates - are disappearing from the face of the earth, warns a new report.
The first comprehensive review of 634 kinds of primates found almost 50 percent of them are in danger of extinction, according to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
Stretchable silicon camera a step closer to artificial retina
By IANS,
Washington : The human eye has inspired a new technology that is likely to push the limits of photography by producing vastly better images over a wider field of view.
The remarkable imaging device has been made possible by combining stretchable optoelectronics and biologically inspired design like the layout of the eye.
University of Illinois and Northwestern University researchers have developed a high-performance, hemispherical "eye" camera using an array of single-crystalline silicon detectors and electronics, configured in a stretchable, interconnected mesh.
Human activity did not wipe out megafauna: latest study
By IANS,
Sydney : A new study that said the first human settlers in Australia wiped out its megafauna has been contracted by a newer study. The latest study says there is no evidence to indicate that human activity wiped out more than 60 species of Australia's large prehistoric animals or megafauna, between 40,000 and 50,000 years ago.
A review of available evidence showed that only 13 species were still alive when humans first arrived in Australia. Those people did not focus on big-game hunting nor cause major habitat change by widespread use of fire.
Mars will not come closer to Earth: UAE astronomers
By IANS,
Abu Dhabi : Astronomers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have rejected reports that the planet Mars would come closer to Earth Aug 27 and look like a second moon.
The Emirates Astronomical Society and the Islamic Moon Observatory Project described the reports carried by some prominent Arabic newspapers as "bad astronomy", the official Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
Several e-mails have also been circulating that Mars will be the brightest in the night sky Aug 27 and will look as large as a full moon, creating a rare opportunity to see two moons in the sky.
Coastlines remain intact, despite climate change: study
By IANS,
Sydney : Preliminary research from the windswept coast of southern France suggest that world's coastlines remain largely intact despite climate change.
The urgent question is whether even small changes in sea levels due to climate change will wreck this natural balance and trigger devastating coastal erosion.
Key parameters are being recorded on equipment constructed by a joint team from Universities of New South Wales (UNSW) and Plymouth (Britain), in what is believed to be the single largest array of scientific instruments ever deployed in experimental coastal research.
Researchers to explore ‘lost world’ beneath Caribbean
By IANS,
London : Scientists are set to explore the world's deepest undersea volcanoes and find out what lives in a 'lost world' five kilometres beneath the Caribbean.
The team of researchers led by Jon Copley of University of Southampton's School of Ocean and Earth Science, will explore the Cayman Trough, which lies between Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.
This rift in the Caribbean seafloor plunges to a depth of more than 5,000 metres. It contains the world's deepest chain of undersea volcanoes, which have yet to be explored.
Playing computer games is beneficial: study
By DPA,
San Francisco : A national study in the US has concluded that computer games foster social interaction and civic engagement and that there was no evidence that they incited users to violence.
The study released Wednesday by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that nearly all teens play video games and that their games' activity has become a major component of their overall social experience.
Technology helps thousands conceive in Australia, New Zealand
By IANS,
Sydney : Latest fertility treatments helped younger and older women in Australia and New Zealand conceive 10,522 babies in 2006, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
The institute reported that 9,291 babies were born in Australia and 1,231 in New Zealand with assisted reproduction treatment (ART).
Messenger craft flies within 200 km of Mercury
By DPA,
Washington : NASA's Messenger spacecraft came within 200 km of Mercury Monday, taking pictures of the rocky planet nearest the sun.
It was the second of three planned flybys for the craft, which is due to settle into orbit around Mercury in 2011, providing what scientists hope will be the most complete picture yet of the solar system's smallest planet.
The 0840 GMT flyby was designed largely to pick up a gravitational boost of energy for the craft. It will begin beaming data back to Earth Wednesday, NASA and university researchers said.
First rehearsal of moon mission Chandrayaan goes off fine
By IANS,
Chennai : India's first lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 was fitted to the launch pad for rehearsals late Saturday night and they "went off well", a top space agency official said Sunday three days ahead of the final launch.
"The launch rehearsal was held at 10 p.m. and everything went off fine. It is like a dress rehearsal ahead of the Oct 22 launch," a scientist said declining to be named.
For Chandrayaan launch, weather gods relented at last moment
By Venkatachari Jagannathan and Fakir Balaji, IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh): Hopes of launching India's first moon mission Chandrayaan-1 were almost given up in the final phase of countdown early Wednesday as the weather gods played truant till the last hours before relenting, a top space official said here.
New video based tests to ease evaluation of drivers’ skills
By IANS,
Sydney : A video-based hazard perception test is being developed by researchers that will measure a driver's ability to recognise and respond to dangerous situations while driving.
Mark Horswill of Queensland University School of Psychology said the test introduced in July this year would help lower accident toll.
The test consists of a series of video clips that present various traffic scenes containing potential traffic conflicts that require the user to take action, such as braking, overtaking or changing course.
What will you eat on the moon, how will you travel?
By IANS,
Chennai : Can countries engaged in exploration and exploitation of the moon introduce plant and animal life there? The issue is back in focus as India's first unmanned lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 gets ready to drop a probe on to the moon's surface.
Endeavour heads for space station on home makeover mission
By Xinhua,
Washington : US space shuttle Endeavour carrying seven astronauts aboard headed Saturday for the international space station on a home makeover mission.
The shuttle with a beautiful orange full moon as backdrop blasted off from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida Friday night. According to NASA, the launch went smoothly without any technical issues popping up.
After successfully jettisoning its rocket boosters and external tank, Endeavour now is safely in orbit and all systems are running well, US space agency NASA's real-time launch blog reported.
Scientists map genes behind bipolar disorder
By IANS,
New York : In a first, scientists have comprehensively mapped the genes believed to cause bipolar disorder.
Indiana University neuroscientists combined data from the latest gene hunting studies for bipolar disorder with information from their own studies to zero in on the best candidate genes for the illness.
Their findings, reported in the latest issue of the American Journal of Medical Genetics, describe how researchers analysed how these genes work together to create a comprehensive biological model of bipolar disorder.
Europe’s biggest wind energy park inaugurated in Portugal
By DPA,
Lisbon : Portugal's Economy Minister Manuel Pinho Wednesday inaugurated what was described as Europe's biggest wind energy park in the northern region of Viana do Castelo.
The Alto Minho I park began generating energy already a year ago, gradually increasing its production to the full potential Wednesday.
The 120 turbines divided between five sub-stations will produce 530 gigawatts annually or one percent of Portugal's energy.
The park, which cost 400 million euros ($520 million), was expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 370,000 tonnes annually.
Climatic changes hastened death of ancient empires
By IANS,
Washington : Unfavourable climatic changes might have hastened the decline of Roman and Byzantine empires more than 1,400 years ago.
Based on chemical signatures in a piece of calcite from a cave near Jerusalem, a team of American and Israeli geologists pieced together a detailed record of the area's climate from roughly from 200 B.C. to 1100 A.D.
Their analysis reveals increasingly dry weather from 100 A.D. to 700 A.D. that coincided with the fall of both Roman and Byzantine rule in the region.
China did have clearer skies during Olympics: Satellite imagery
By IANS,
Washington : China did have clearer skies and easier breathing when it shut down factories and banished many cars in a pre-Olympic sprint to clean up Beijing's air.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, researchers have since analysed data from NASA's Aura and Terra satellites that show how key pollutants responded to the Olympic restrictions.
Newly discovered light sensors communicate directly with brain
By IANS,
Washington : Neuro-scientists have unravelled how newly discovered light sensors in the eye detect light and communicate with the brain.
These light sensors are a small number of nerve cells in the retina that contain melanopsin molecules.
Unlike conventional light-sensing cells in the retina-rods and cones, melanopsin-containing cells are not used for seeing images.
Instead, they monitor light levels to adjust the body's clock and control constriction of the pupils in the eye, among other functions.
NASA mission to help unravel climate mysteries
By Xinhua,
Washington : NASA's first spacecraft dedicated to studying atmospheric carbon dioxide is in final preparation for a Feb 23 launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Carbon dioxide is the leading human-produced greenhouse gas driving changes in Earth's climate.
The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) will provide the first complete picture of human and natural carbon dioxide sources as well as their "sinks", the places where carbon dioxide is pulled out of the atmosphere and stored.
Ultrasound to help eliminate Ibuprofen from polluted water
By IANS,
London : An international team of scientists has developed an ultrasound treatment to remove Ibuprofen from waters polluted with this drug.
The new method could be used in water purification plants, which would avoid the emission of pharmaceutical pollutants into rivers, lakes, seas and other surface waters.
The team at the laboratories of the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland has developed a novel method for eliminating pharmaceutical products from water.
Kepler camera launched: Other “earths”, where are you?
By DPA,
Washington : NASA late Friday sent the Kepler satellite into Earth's orbit with instructions to search for extraterrestrial life on Earth-type planets orbiting other stars.
The launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida on board a Delta-II-rocket was reported on a live blog operated by the Kepler project on the internet.
The Kepler mission, named after the 17th century German astronomer, is targetting about 100,000 stars in the Milky Way galaxy that scientists believe could have planets orbiting in a "habitable" zone.
Some soil bacteria act as clean-up agents too
By IANS,
Washington : Not all soil bacteria are bad. Some of them act as good Samaritans as they "inhale" toxic metals, strip them of their toxicity and then "exhale" them, say researchers. In the foreseeable future, they might potentially clean-up toxic chemicals left over from nuclear weapons production decades ago.
Using a unique combination of microscopes, researchers at Ohio State University were able to glimpse how the Shewanella oneidensis bacterium breaks down metal to extract oxygen.
Telecommunication interconnection regulation revised
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's telecom watchdog Tuesday revised the Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable Services) Interconnection Regulation, 2004, making it mandatory for all broadcasters to have reference interconnect offers (RIOs) for their addressable systems.
The Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable Services) Interconnection (Fifth Amendment) Regulations, 2009, released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), covers regulatory provisions on issues relating to inter-connection for addressable platforms and registration of inter-connection agreements.
Scientists develop fast, accurate test to detect bio-terror agent
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have developed a simple, accurate and highly sensitive test to detect and quantify ricin, a highly lethal toxin with potential use as a bioterrorism agent.
Ricin, a protein extracted from castor beans, can be in the form of a powder, mist, pellet or solution. When injected or inhaled, as little as one-half mg of ricin is lethal to humans.
North Korea a nuclear power state, says IAEA chief
By DPA,
Beijing : North Korea must be regarded as a nuclear power, the head of the UN's international nuclear watchdog said Monday.
Mohamed ElBaradei, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), also said in Beijing, four days after North Korea forced the agency's inspectors out of the country, that North Korea could restart its main nuclear facility within months.
Therefore, North Korea must be persuaded to return to the negotiating table as quickly as possible, he said.
Software developed to embed security code in handsets
By IANS,
New Delhi: Over 2.5 crore owners of cheap handsets, that stood to be banned in India as these did not have the regulatory unique 15-digit identity code, can breathe a sigh of relief -- help is on the way.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the organisation representing GSM service operators, Monday said it has developed a software that can embed the code - known as International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) - in these handsets.
COAI in collaboration with handset body Mobile Standard Alliance of India (MSAI) has developed the software.
Russia launches US satellite
By Xinhua,
Moscow : Russia Saturday launched a rocket carrying a US communication satellite into space, the Itar-Tass news agency reported.
The Briz-m rocket, with a ProtoStar-2 satellite atop, blasted off at 0057 GMT from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan, spokesman Alexander Bobrenev of the Khrunichev Centre, the manufacturer of the rocket, said.
The ProtoStar-2 satellite, a product of the Boeing corporation, will provide communication services to customers in various countries including Indonesia, India and the Philippines.
Chandrayaan orbit raised to 200 km for further Moon probe
By IANS,
Bangalore : The Indian space agency has raised the orbit of its first unmanned lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 to 200km from the lunar surface for further studies on orbit perturbations and gravitational field variations of the Moon.
"With the successful completion of all the mission objectives from 100 km above the moon since November 2008, we have raised the height of the spacecraft to 200 km Tuesday to enable imaging lunar surface with a wider swath," the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said in a statement here Wednesday.
Google’s new OS could hit Microsoft where it hurts
By Andy Goldberg, DPA,
San Francisco : It's the ultimate showdown in the technology world, the clash of giants that has been eagerly awaited for years. Web giant Google is taking its clearest aim yet at Microsoft with its plan to produce its own operating system that would optimise the way computers work on the Internet.
Gujarat launches website for solar eclipse
By IANS,
Surat : The Gujarat government Monday launched a website dedicated to the total solar eclipse of July 22, an official here said.
The state government launched the website solareclipsesurat.in jointly with the Surat Municipal Corporation and the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The website explains why the total solar eclipse should be viewed in Surat and the safety precautions that should be taken while viewing the solar eclipse. Also, it informs about the events on July 22 in Surat, the official added.
Experts to study animal behaviour during solar eclipse
By Richa Sharma, IANS,
Bhopal : How would animals and birds behave during a total solar eclipse? Experts at the Van Vihar National Park in this Madhya Pradesh capital will study animal behaviour during the phenomena July 22.
The eclipse Wednesday will be the longest solar eclipse of the century. Lasting six minutes and 39 seconds, it would be visible across Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific.
Cloudy sky plays spoilsport in Bihar’s ‘eclipse village’
By IANS,
Taregna (Bihar) : Thousands of people who have gathered in this Bihar village to witness the century's largest total eclipse were disappointed Wednesday as the sun remained hidden under cloudy skies.
The eclipse was to begin at 5:29 a.m just after the sunrise but cloudy skies spoiled the mood of the thousands of people, children and adults, who thronged there to watch the celestial spectacle
However, people are optimistic for a more clear picture when the eclipse will reach its totality at 6:24 a.m.
India starts to develop its heaviest satellite
By Fakir Balaji, IANS,
Bangalore : India will soon design and develop its heaviest communications satellite GSAT-11 to provide advanced telecom services from 2011-12, a senior official of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said here Friday. At 4.5 tonnes, it will weigh more than twice as much as the biggest Indian satellite in orbit now.
"Activities to design and develop GSAT-11 will start immediately, as the project has been cleared by the government at a cost of Rs.5-billion (Rs.500 crore)," ISRO Director S. Satish said.
NASA to launch Discovery shuttle to ISS on Tuesday
By RIA Novosti,
Washington : The launch of the shuttle Discovery to the International Space Station is scheduled for 1:36 a.m. EDT [05:36 GMT] on Tuesday, a NASA spokesman told RIA Novosti on Monday.
The spokesman said Discovery's technical systems are in order and the launch could only be delayed due to a sudden change in the weather.
According to shuttle weather officer Kathy Winter, there is an 80% chance the shuttle will be launched on Tuesday.
US scientist’s flip-flop on Chandrayaan
By IANS,
Panaji : Three days after the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) admitted the abrupt end of its Chandrayaan-1 mission, a leading US-based scientist associated with the project Wednesday termed it "a complete success", but added that "what we have not achieved is our ultimate goal, which was a much more extended mission that was to be achieved during the full two years".
YouTube gets billion hits per day
By DPA,
San Francisco : Google's online video site YouTube now gets a billion hits a day, the site's founder Chad Hurley said in a video posted Friday.
"Three years ago today (YouTube co-founder) Steve (Chen) and I stood in front of our offices and jokingly crowned ourselves the 'burger kings' of media," read the post, which was titled Y,000,000,000uTube.
Pirated Windows 7 generates $100,000 in India
By Rajat Rai, IANS,
Lucknow : About 50,000 pirated DVDs of Microsoft Windows 7 are estimated to have been sold here since the official launch on Oct 22, generating unaccounted business of around Rs.50 lakh (nearly $100,000).
The reason for the allure of the pirated versions: These cost Rs.40-Rs.250 in Naza Market in Hazratganj here, drawing buyers from not only the rest of Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring states like Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttarakhand but also Nepal and Bangladesh.
Class 4 Gurgaon student’s doodle to feature on Google
By IANS,
New Delhi : A Class 4 student of Gurgaon will have his doodle featured on Google all day Nov 14. This is the first time that a 'made in India' doodle will be featured on the popular search engine.
Beating a good 4,000 other competitors, Puru Pratap Singh's doodle is based on the theme 'My India - Full of Life'.
A Google doodle is a creative Google logo that appears on some special days, to commemorate scientific and artistic achievements, historic or seasonal events, and other local occasions.
Climate politics eclipses climate science
By Joydeep Gupta, IANS,
For the last few weeks, leaders of industrialised countries have been busy reducing expectations from next month's critical Copenhagen climate summit, while their counterparts in the developing world declare ambitious plans to control emissions of the greenhouse gases (GHG) that are warming the world.
Bangalore kids send 25-metre ‘green’ message to Copenhagen
By IANS,
Bangalore : "Go green, save planet Earth", "Save planet Earth before it's too late" are some of the appeals a group of Bangalore children has made on a 25-metre long khadi scroll, planned to be sent to the leaders at the ongoing Copenhagen climate summit.
"The 25-metre khadi scroll containing messages and signatures of children has been especially designed as an appeal to the world leaders gathered at Copenhagen summit to save the Earth from an imminent environmental crisis," a member of Rotary Green Brigade, a Bangalore-based voluntary organisation, told IANS.
First earth-like planet seems to be volcanic wasteland
By IANS,
Washington : The first Earth-like planet spotted outside our solar system seems to be a volcanic wasteland.
The rocky planet CoRoT-7b was discovered circling a star some 480 light years from Earth. It is, however, a forbidding place and not likely to harbour life.
That's because it is so close to its star that temperatures might be above 2,200 Celsius on the surface lit by its star and as low as minus 210 Celsius on its dark side.
Device to sniff out explosives at airports
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have developed an intelligent system that sniffs out chemicals in explosives and helps track terrorists who may fool existing security systems at airports.
Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Communication, Information Processing and Ergonomics FKIE in Wachtberg, Germany, have built the prototype.
They have named it Hamlet, for Hazardous Material Localisation and Person Tracking.
"Hamlet will alert security personnel to suspicious individuals," says head of department Wolfgang Koch from the FKIE.
Scientists locate breeding ground of rarest bird
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers have located the breeding ground of a species dubbed "the world's least known bird" -- the large-billed reed warbler, in the remote Wakhan reaches of Afghanistan.
The recent discovery represents a watershed moment in the study of this bird. The first specimen of such warblers was discovered in India in 1867, with well over a century elapsing before a second discovery of a single bird in Thailand in 2006.
Egyptians suffered heart attacks 3,500 years ago
By IANS,
Washington : Ancient Egyptian mummies, some as old as 3,500 years, showed hardening of arteries, suggesting that heart attacks and stroke afflicted the ancients too.
"Atherosclerosis, despite differences in ancient and modern lifestyles, was rather common in ancient Egyptians of high socio-economic status living," says Gregory Thomas, clinical professor of cardiology at the University of California-Irvine (UCI).
"The findings suggest that we may have to look beyond modern risk factors to fully understand the disease," said Thomas, principal study co-investigator.
NASA picks companies to study commercial crew transport
By DPA,
Washington : US space agency NASA Monday named five aerospace companies to come up with concepts for transporting humans into orbit under plans announced by the Obama administration to shift responsibility for transportation into space to private firms.
NASA awarded a total of $50 million to the companies to study human spaceflight alternatives after the retirement of the space shuttle later this year. The money comes from government stimulus funds authorized by Congress to jump-start the faltering US economy last year.
Goojje not to change logo despite Google objection
By IANS,
Beijing : Chinese web portal Goojje has said it "will not change" its logo despite US search giant Google's threat to sue it over copyright infringement, according to a media report Wednesday.
Goojje's logo resembles the logo of Google Inc and also bears a paw print sign like that of Baidu Inc, the biggest Internet search engine in China and Google Inc's arch rival in the country.
‘India’s per capita carbon emissions to rise threefold by 2030’
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's per capita emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) will increase from the present 1-1.2 tonnes to 3-3.5 tonnes of carbon per year by 2030, predicts the country's annual Economic Survey released Thursday.
Quoting climate modelling studies, the survey predicted that per capita emissions would be 2-2.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2020. It will go up to 3.3.5 tonnes by 2030, still lower than 4.5 tonnes per capita that China now emits every year.
3-D glimpse of Shanghai World Expo a mouse click away
By IANS,
Beijing : Now visiting the Shanghai World Expo will be possible through internet as the organiser has decided to launch its new website to display the event with three-dimensional (3-D) vision.
The organising committee is trying to provide a 3-D Shanghai World Expo garden in the virtual world so as to make the 159-year-old traditional exhibition accessible to every netizen across the world.
"The 3-D website is unprecedented in the World Expo history," said Wang Liping, who is in charge of the 3-D Shanghai World Expo website program.
PSLV launch put off due to technical glitch
By IANS,
Bangalore : India has put off the launch of an advanced remote sensing satellite, fixed for May 9, after a technical glitch in its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle was detected, the space agency said here Thursday.
"A marginal drop in the pressure in second stage of the vehicle was noticed during the mandatory checks carried out on the PSLV-C15 vehicle," the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said in a statement.
NASA declares Phoenix Mars lander dead
By DPA,
Washington : A robotic lander that confirmed the presence of ice on Mars was confirmed dead by NASA scientists Monday.
The Phoenix Mars lander was damaged by harsh conditions during the Martian winter and repeated attempts to contact it have been unsuccessful, the US space agency said.
The lander had wrapped up its mission in 2008 and had not been expected to survive the harsh winter, which is twice as long as that on Earth. But scientists needed to make last attempts to contact it in good weather before officially writing it off.
Facebook overhauls privacy settings
By DPA,
San Francisco : Social networking site Facebook introduced a new set of privacy controls Wednesday in an attempt to quell criticism that it was lax about protecting users' personal information.
The new controls are featured in a streamlined privacy panel that allows users much easier management of who can access their information.
"We believe in privacy. We believe in giving people control," Facebook founder Marc Zuckerberg said at a press conference to announce the overhaul.
Scientists edge towards mass production of silicon substitute
By IANS,
London : Scientists have leaped over a major hurdle in efforts to begin commercial production of a form of carbon that could rival silicon in its potential for revolutionising electronic devices ranging from supercomputers to cell phones.
Called graphene, the material consists of a layer of graphite 50,000 times thinner than a human hair with unique electronic properties.
244,000 Germans log objections to Google’s Street View
By DPA,
Berlin : Some 244,237 German households have so far demanded that images of their homes be removed from Google Inc's Street View geo-data service, the online search giant said Thursday.
Scientists inch closer to synthetic blood
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have created particles that mimic some key properties of red blood cells, paving the way for the development of synthetic blood.
Software turns fuzzy x-rays, MRIs into coloured 3D pictures
By IANS,
London : A special software called BodyViz converts fuzzy x-rays, MRIs and ultrasounds into full-colour 3D pictures.
Mild tremors felt in Delhi, parts of north India
By IANS,
New Delhi : Mild tremors were felt Monday in parts of North India, including New Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh at 11:57 a.m.
Russian astronomer discovers new comet
By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russian amateur astronomer Artyom Novichonok, a student of Petrozavodsk university, has discovered a new comet, website Astronet said.
Mysterious object seen refuelling from sun
By IANS,
London : An orbiting NASA space telescope has captured the footage of a planet-sized object flying close to the sun, and extending a "refuelling tube" into the sun's surface.
Over 300 use China’s fastest supercomputer
By IANS,
Beijing : The number of registered users of China's fastest supercomputer has crossed 300, the authorities said.
IT tool helps satellites pinpoint ancient settlements
By IANS,
Washington : A new computer tool that extracts clues about ancient human settlements from satellite imagery has uncovered thousands of sites which might otherwise have been lost.
89 power projects pending with environment ministry
By IANS,
New Delhi: A total of 89 power projects seeking green clearance are pending with the ministry, Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan told the Lok Sabha Monday.
Google Play store hits 25 bn downloads
By IANS,
San Francisco: Google announced Wednesday that its online store for media and applications Google Play has hit 25 billion downloads.
Facebook has 65 million active users in India
By IANS,
Hyderabad : World's largest social network Facebook Thursday announced that it has over 65 million active users in India, an eight-fold increase over last two years.
Indian Mars Orbiter completes 100 days in space
By IANS,
Bangalore : India's maiden Mars Orbiter spacecraft completes 100 days Wednesday cruising through interplanetary space in its voyage towards the red planet.
"Health of...
Teacher reaches to stars, 21 years after Challenger disaster
By DPA
Washington : Barbara Morgan taught math and reading in the Rocky Mountains, then English and science in the Andes but she wanted to go to even greater heights. The 55-year-old Californian has now taken her classroom to space.
Morgan took off last week as part of the space shuttle Endeavour's seven-member crew.
Even before the astronaut has had the chance to teach for students via satellite, she gave a lesson in perseverance.
NASA adds three more days to shuttle mission
By DPA
Washington : The ongoing stay of the US space shuttle Endeavour at the orbiting International Space Station (ISS) has been extended by three days, the US space agency NASA announced.
The revised schedule has allowed a fourth, extra space walk by shuttle astronauts Friday.
The decision was made after the successful operation of a new electricity hook-up allowing the shuttle to draw power from the ISS. The Station-to-Shuttle Power Transfer System allows the Endeavour crew to conserve the shuttle's battery power.
Russian Proton-M rocket with Japanese satellite crashes
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : A Russian Proton-M booster rocket carrying a Japanese communications satellite exploded shortly after lift-off early Thursday, a space agency spokesman said.
The rocket, which was launched from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan at 2.43 a.m. Moscow time, experienced an engine malfunction and second-stage separation failure 139 seconds into its flight. It came down in the central Kazakh steppe, 50 km southeast of the town of Dzhezkazgan, the spokesman said.
Data to go: Options for hauling lots of files
By DPA
Washington : These days, almost everything's digital - our photos, music collections, videos, documents, financial records, and more.
Most of us can get all of this data on a few hard drives. And so long as we're using the computer that houses those drives, everything's fine.
But what happens when we need or want to take large amounts of data with us? That's when portable storage becomes critical.
Germany hopes to benefit from India’s moon mission
By Mohammed Shafeeq
Hyderabad, Sep 27 (IANS) German Aerospace Centre DLR is hoping that the data generated from India's lunar mission 'Chandrayaan-1', to be launched next year, will help in its own proposed moon mission slated for launch in 2012.
"Chandrayaan-1 has good science and high resolution instruments and we expect that the data on different aspects of lunar exploration will benefit us. No agreement has been signed but we hope the scientific findings will help widen lunar exploration," a DLR official told IANS.
India moots international mechanism for space assets protection
By NNN-Bernama/PTI
Hyderabad : Warning that outer space may become the "battlefield of the future," India proposed a "robust" international mechanism for protection of space assets since they were "vulnerable to attacks."
New Delhi also told global space scientists to join forces in space exploration, asserting the world can "ill-afford the duplication of efforts and resources" in the face of many pressing priorities, according to a PTI report.
Ensuring everyday privacy while using the computer
By DPA
Washington : Most of the privacy threats we hear about are from anonymous "hackers" or unnamed forces waiting to swoop via an Internet connection and steal our data or personal information. But many people have privacy concerns that are closer to home.
While the outside threats do exist, it's probably far more likely that a friend, guest, colleague, or family member will see information on your computer that you had not intended to share.
How can you tighten security at home or the office? Read on for some answers.
Soyuz rocket with crew aboard undocks from ISS
By RIA Novosti
Mission Control (Moscow Region) : A Soyuz spacecraft with two Russian cosmonauts and Malaysia's first space traveller aboard undocked from the International Space Station (ISS) Sunday.
The spacecraft is to bring back to Earth the Russian cosmonauts, Fyodor Yurchikhin and Oleg Kotov, after six months of their stay at the world's sole orbiter as members of the ISS 15th expedition, along with Malaysian Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor who arrived at the station on Oct 12.
Give eyes a rest: keep distance from LCD monitors
By DPA
Dortmund (Germany) : LCD monitors might be pretty, but computer users should still admire them from a distance.
Just like with old-fashioned cathode ray tube monitors, users should be sure to sit at least 50-80 cm from the monitor. Sitting closer means users run the risk of wearing out their eye muscles.
Older monitors, which work just like older televisions, took up so much desk space that workers were often left with no choice but to sit close to the monitor, says Windel. But that's not a problem with the newer liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors.
Bodhi tree branch cut three years ago: report
By IANS
Patna : A scientific report has vindicated allegations by Buddhists that one of their most sacred religious symbols -- the Bodhi tree at the Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya -- had a branch cut off three years ago.
The Dehradun-based Forest Research Institute (FRI), in its detailed report submitted to the Bihar government, said a branch of the sacred Bodhi tree was cut three years ago.
"The report has proved that a branch of the Bodhi tree was cut three years ago instead of last year as claimed," home secretary Afzal Amanullah said Friday.
Scientists can predict if women are going to break their hip
By IANS
New York : Scientists have listed 11 factors that will help doctors predict if a postmenopausal woman is going to suffer hip fractures over a period of five years.
A hip fracture is a common injury for elderly people. A broken hip can lead to more serious problems, even death. For older women, a hip fracture can mean continuing ill health.
Google distorts reality, Austrian study says
By DPA
Vienna : Google, the world's largest Internet search engine, is on several fronts a danger that has to be stopped, a study released by Austria's Graz University claims.
A research team led by Prof. Hermann Maurer, chairman of Graz University's Institute for Information Systems and Computer Media, argues that Google is turning into a new version of George Orwell's "Big Brother" - creating unacceptable monopolies in many areas of the worldwide web.
Scientists identify gene that influences alcohol consumption
By Xinhua
Washington : A variant of a gene involved in communication among brain cells has a direct influence on alcohol consumption in mice, according to a new study by US scientists.
If approved in human beings, the finding may lead to new opportunities for developing drugs to treat alcohol dependence.
Known as Grm7, the gene encodes a receptor subtype that inhibits the release of glutamate and other neurotransmitter molecules that brain cells use to communicate with one another.
Russia, France develop new satellite platform
By RIA Novasti
Moscow : Russia's Reshetnev Applied Mechanics Production Association (NPO-PM) and France's Thales Alenia Space are developing a new multifunctional satellite platform, Russian officials said Wednesday.
Thales Alenia Space, a major payload provider for the Russian telecom satellite market, and NPO-PM are closely working on a joint programme to build new multi-mission satellite platform, optimised for a direct injection in the Geosynchronous Orbit (GSO) and High-Elliptical Orbit (HEO) missions.
New Chinese law to encourage innovation
By Xinhua
Beijing : China's top legislature Saturday adopted an amendment to the Law on Science and Technology Progress that shows more tolerance of failures in scientific projects but brooks no fraud or manipulation of data.
The law, for the first time, allows scientists to report failures in innovative researches without harming their eligibility for future funding.
The amendment, which is to take effect July 1, 2008, was approved at the seven-day meeting of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) that ended Saturday.
Scientists create living heart for dead rat
By IANS
New York : Scientists in the US have created an artificial rat heart using the cells of baby rats.
The breakthrough by researchers at the University of Minnesota offers hope that the day is not far when scientists will be able to create human hearts for transplant.
The researchers removed all the cells from a dead rat heart, leaving the valves and outer structure as scaffolding for new heart cells injected from newborn rats.
HCL Infosystems posts robust profit
By IANS
Noida : India's leading IT hardware and systems integration firm HCL Infosystems Ltd Monday announced net profit of Rs.814.1 million ($20.69 million) for the quarter ending Dec 2007, an increase of seven percent from the same period last year.
The company reported consolidated revenues of Rs.33.06 billion ($840 million) during the period, an increase of 11 percent from Rs.29.68 billion in the third quarter of 2006-07.
Mercury dotted with volcanoes, shrinking as aging
By Xinhua
Beijing : Some of the 1,213 photos taken by NASA's Messenger show that ancient volcanoes dot Mercury which is shrinking as it gets older, forming wrinkle-like ridges, media reported Thursday.
The first pictures from the unseen side of Mercury reveal the wrinkles of a shrinking, aging planet with scars from volcanic eruptions and a birthmark shaped like a spider.
India’s multipurpose scientific vessel ready
By IANS
Chennai : India's new multipurpose scientific vessel is ready for deployment and will be at the forefront of the country's sea research.
Named Sagar Nidhi, it is parked off the east coast of Tamil Nadu. Sagar Nidhi will be dedicated to the nation after Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal returns from Australia, officials at a scientists' meet here said.
It is expected to provide logistical support in India's Antarctic II and Arctic missions, which are on the cards in the next five years.
Shuttle Atlantis closes in on international space station
By SPA
Houston : Atlantis maneuvered toward a rendezvous with the international space station on Saturday, bringing a new US$2 billion (¤1.4 billion) lab that European scientists can't wait to see installed, reported ap.
The shuttle had been on a two-day, high-speed chase to catch up with the station.
The meeting will give NASA engineers another chance to search for launch damage to the shuttle's thermal shielding, the problem that doomed Columbia in 2003.
Yahoo! Buzz offers buzz-worthy stories
By Arun Kumar, IANS
Washington : Leading global internet brand Yahoo! Inc. has introduced Yahoo! Buzz, offering the most interesting and relevant content from websites across the worldwide web and bringing more buzz-worthy stories to the homepage of Yahoo!
Currently in beta, Yahoo! Buzz measures consumer votes and search patterns to identify interesting and timely stories and videos from large news sources as well as niche blogs around the web, the firm announced Wednesday.
European Space Agency launches first robot freighter into space
By Xinhua
Paris : The European Space Agency on Sunday launched its first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) into space, French media reported.
The ATV blasted into the skies at 1:03 a.m. (0403 GMT) aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
The launch was initially scheduled for Saturday but was delayed for technical checks.
The ATV is scheduled to separate from the Ariane rocket at 0535 GMT and reignite its propulsion system 30 minutes later.
Amazing super 3-D camera to revolutionise photography
By IANS
Washington : Imagine a camera that sees the world through thousands of tiny lenses, each a miniature camera unto itself. Now stop imagining and start imaging.
Researchers at Stanford University already have the prototype of just such a gadget: a 3-megapixel chip, with all its micro-lenses adding up to a staggering 12,616 cameras.
The multi-aperture camera looks and feels like a small cell phone camera. And the final product may cost less than a digital camera, the researchers say, because the quality of its main lens is no longer of paramount importance.
Villainous virus turns out to be quite a hero
By IANS
London : Viruses are not such villains after all. They may, in fact, be the reason we are alive, says a new study that contends that half the planet's oxygen is a by-product of bacteria suffering from viral infections.
"Instead of being viewed solely as evolutionary bad guys, causing diseases, viruses appear to be of central importance in the planetary process. In fact, they may be essential to our survival," said Nicholas Mann of the University of Warwick and author of the study.
New smartphones with killer applications could replace PCs
By Andy Goldberg, DPA
Las Vegas : Think that cellphone in your pocket is pretty neat? Think again. Spurred by the phenomenal launch of the iPhone, the prospect of a Google phone and open networks, inventors and entrepreneurs around the world are feverishly developing plans to expand what mobile phones can do.
"They want to combine the computing power of the latest phones with social networks and location-tracking technologies to create a new generation of cell phones," says Simon Blitz, who runs a large cell phone wholesale company in the US.
India exploring commercial satellite launches
By IANS,
New Delhi : India is exploring commercial opportunities by providing facility of satellite launch to other countries at viable rates, the Lok Sabha was informed Wednesday.
"Our space programme's commercial wing Antrix is looking at opportunities to launch satellites for other countries. India is one of the foremost countries in space technology," said Prithviraj Chavan, Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office.
Critically endangered seabirds unable to find mates
By IANS,
Washington : Alarmed by the probability that one of the world's rarest seabirds might soon be extinct, scientists are creating a protected breeding colony to help them attract females.
The rapidly dwindling species, Magenta Petrel, now has only between eight and 15 breeding pairs. Molecular analysis of the endangered species discovered that 95 percent of non-breeding adults were male, hence unable to attract a mate.
India must market for global satellite contracts
By R. Ramaseshan, IANS,
The success of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Monday in putting into orbit 10 satellites with a single launch is certainly a commendable achievement marking as it does the second largest number of satellites launched at one go. Now it needs to push aggressively for more contracts in this niche market.
Besides ISRO's own two primary satellites, Cartosat-2A (690 kg) and IMS-1 (83 kg), Monday's payload included seven nanosatellites (1-10 kg class) and one microsatellite (10-100 kg class) from foreign customers, which together weighed about 50 kg.
Sun just another ‘ordinary’ star, finds study
By IANS,
Sydney : The most comprehensive comparison of the sun with other stars has established its ordinariness - and the possibility that life could be common in the universe.
Rather than guess what properties a star should have to enable life, the researchers decided to compare the sun - which already hosts a life-bearing planet - to other stars.
“The question 'how special is the sun' is easier to address because we do have observations of thousands of other sun-like stars,” noted Charley Lineweaver of Australian National University, co-author of the study.
Australian astronaut urges bigger role of Australia in space science
By Xinhua,
Canberra : Astronaut Andy Thomas urged Australia on Friday to get greater involvement in space science and exploration, as a return to the moon is under preparation and a mission to Mars contemplated.
Speaking at a Senate inquiry into the space industry in Adelaide, South Australia, Thomas said Australia should establish a dedicated space agency to foster expertise in everything from satellite technology to rocket launching.
China to launch second Olympic weather forecasting satellite on May 27
By Xinhua,
Beijing : China will launch a second Olympic weather forecasting satellite, the Fengyun-3 (FY-3), on May 27, said the China Meteorological Administration (CMA) on Friday.
The new satellite will provide accurate and timely information about weather changes to facilitate more precise weather forecasts during the Beijing Olympic Games set to open on Aug. 8, said a CMA official.
The official added that the new satellite, with a bigger payload, would provide medium-range weather forecasts up to 10 to 15 days.
Robots tread on thin ice when scientists fear
By IANS,
Washington : This is one machine that goes where humans fear to tread - on thin ice.
SnoMote - designed at Georgia Institute of Technology (GIT) and Pennsylvania State University - is a robot capable of negotiating volatile ice sheets as they crack, shift and fill with water.
The robot goes where it is impossible for scientists to walk and gets accurate measurement and inputs of ice sheets, something that lies beyond the ken of satellites.
NASA’s Phoenix Mars lander commanded to unstow arm
By Xinhua,
Washington : U.S. Mars lander Phoenix, which touched down on Sunday at northern polar plains on Mars, successfully unstowed its robotic arm on Wednesday, according to NASA mission updates.
Early Wednesday, scientists leading Phoenix mission from the University of Arizona sent commands to move the lander's robotic arm for the first time after its touchdown.
Synthetic virus conveys genes, drug molecules to tumour cells
By IANS,
Washington : Korean researchers have created an artificial virus able to replicate the function of the original - transporting both genes and drugs into cancer cells.
But with a vital difference - they do not cause side-effects like sparking an immune response or causing cancer like their real counterparts.
A research team headed by Myongsoo Lee of Yonsei University, Seoul, has now developed a new strategy that allows the artificial viruses to maintain a defined form and size.
Honeybees able to learn different ‘dialects’: scientists
By Xinhua,
Beijing : Honeybees are able to understand different "languages" communicated through the dances of bees from different continents, a team of scientists from China, Australia and Germany have found.
Songkun Su of Zhejiang University's College of Animal Sciences, who headed the study, said the research team found the Asian honeybee, Apis cerana cerana (Acc), could quickly grasp the distinctive dance of the European Apis mellifera ligustica (Aml) subspecies, as they conveyed information on the locations of food sources.
Shuttle Discovery flight hits halfway mark
By SPA,
Cape Canaveral, Florida : As their flight hit the halfway mark, shuttle Discovery's astronauts faced more work with the space station's new science lab on Saturday.
All 10 occupants of the linked shuttle and station chipped in Friday to get Japan's billion-dollar Kibo lab up and running, and to expand its size by attaching an attic to it.
On Saturday _ one week into their mission _ the astronauts planned to test drive the lab's 33-foot (10-meter) robot arm, the Associated Press reported.
U.S. space shuttle departs station for return home
By SPA,
Houston : The U.S. space shuttle Discovery backed away from the International Space Station on Wednesday, leaving behind a Japanese research laboratory, a new crew member and high hopes for the outpost's completion by 2010, Reuters reported.
Pilot Ken Ham pulsed Discovery's steering jets to slip away from the station's Harmony docking port at 7:42 a.m. EDT/1142 GMT.
The shuttle arrived on June 2 to deliver Japan's primary contribution to the $100 billion complex, the 37-foot-long (11-metre-long) Kibo laboratory.
"We hope we left them a better, more capable station than