Scientists develop tiny sensor to sniff out toxins
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have developed a stamp-sized sensor that can sniff out some poisonous gases and toxins and can show results simply by changing colour.
The sensor could be useful in detecting high exposures to toxic industrial chemicals that pose serious health risks at the workplace.
While physicists have radiation badges to protect them in the workplace, chemists and workers who handle chemicals do not have equivalent devices to monitor their exposure to potentially toxic chemicals.
China’s second lunar probe blasts off
By IANS,
Beijing : China Friday launched its second unmanned lunar probe, Chang'e-2. This was the second of the country's three-phase moon mission which will culminate in a landing on the moon.
Venezuela sends satellite to join space club nations
By Prensa Latina,
Caracas : Venezuela has joined the space club nations by launching its first satellite, built with Chinese technology, into orbit successfully earlier this week.
Named after Simon Bolivar, the hero of South American independence, the communications satellite Venesat-1 was launched from China Wednesday.
Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez, who monitored the launch along with his fellow leftist Bolivian President Evo Morales from the eastern town of Luepa, described it as a "construction of socialism" and a "symbol of Latin American integration".
India to launch cartography satellite in June
By IANS,
Chennai : The Indian space agency is expected to launch June 5 its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C15), carrying a cartography satellite and a couple of other payloads, according to the US-based space consultancy firm Futron Corp.
But a source in the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) told IANS that the launch is most likely to happen during the second week of June.
The 44-metre tall PSLV is a four-stage (engine) rocket powered by solid and liquid propellants alternatively.
China launches new search engine
Beijing: A new Chinese-language online search engine --Chinaso.com -- was launched Friday, marking China's first search service set up by the country's major news...
Feast organised during solar eclipse in Orissa
By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : The Pathani Samant Planetarium in Orissa has arranged a special feast at its campus during the solar eclipse Friday to dispel any superstition, said an official.
"There are superstitions prevalent among people that if you eat during a solar eclipse it will have a bad effect. But we want to dispel superstitions. We have arranged a special feast at the planetarium premises. It will be joined by officials and members of the public during the solar eclipse," said Subhendu Pattnaik, deputy director of the Pathani Samant Planetarium, in Bhubaneswar.
Japanese astronaut to test underwear in outer space
By Xinhua
Beijing : A Japanese astronaut will don special boxer shorts and gym wear during his upcoming mission to see if the newly developed high-tech clothing can increase comfort levels on the International Space Station, Japan's space agency said Friday.
The seamless, stretchable boxer shorts, gym wear and socks are made of lightweight fabric woven from anti-bacterial and antistatic fibers to give "high levels of deodorant, antiseptic and antistatic effect" in space, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said.
Treat for sky gazers, comet closest to Earth Tuesday
by IANS,
New Delhi : Sky gazers in the capital are in for a celestial treat Tuesday as the recently discovered comet McNaught will be closest to Earth and visible to the naked eye.
Look towards the northeastern sky before sunrise Tuesday, the comet will appear as a dim and diffused circular patch of light gliding through the constellation of Perseus.
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.
Telescope-like device may reverse vision loss
By IANS
Washington : A small telescope-like device developed by ophthalmologists in the US may be able to halt and even reverse vision loss caused by macular degeneration, an age-related eye disease.
According to a new study published in the Archives of Ophthalmology, the optical prosthetics, tiny enough to be balanced on a fingertip, dramatically improved the vision of about two thirds of 206 patients studied in a 24-month clinical trial.
Microsoft and Ford team up on electric cars
By DPA,
New York: Microsoft and Ford are to collaborate on the development of an electric car that will use Microsoft technology to streamline the battery-charging process, the companies announced Wednesday at the opening of the New York International Auto Show.
Ford said it will use Microsoft's Hohm electric-car charging optimization service to help drivers determine the best time to charge their vehicles and how to best minimize impact on the grid.
Indian space programmes on demand worldwide: ISRO
By Fakir Balaji, IANS
Hyderabad : Indian space programmes for education, healthcare, management of natural resources and weather forecast and disaster management are in great demand the world over due to their domino effect on living standards, a top Indian space agency official said here Thursday.
"Nations across Latin America, Europe, Africa and Asia-Pacific are making a beeline to seek our expertise and resources for replicating the success of our space programmes and applications.
Facebook, gadgets galore… Indian children take to ‘multi-tasking’
By Madhulika Sonkar, IANS,
Saudi prince buys into Twitter
By IANS,
London: Saudi billionaire prince Alwaleed bin Talal has invested $300 million in the microblogging company Twitter, becoming its latest major investor.
‘The moon is better than any space station’
By Papri Sri Raman, IANS,
Chennai : Even as Chandrayaan-1, India's first unmanned spacecraft to the moon, enters the lunar orbit Saturday, one Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) scientist says the moon is well on its way to becoming the best international space station.
"It will be better than any artificial space station", said P. Sreekumar, head of the space astronomy and instrumentation division at the ISRO satellite centre.
"The moon has resources,"Sreekumar told IANS in an interview.
"To any man-made space station, everything has to be carted from Earth," he said.
Software embedded in soldier’s helmet pinpoints enemy snipers
By IANS,
Washington : Imagine a squad of soldiers who can pinpoint out-of-sight enemy snipers and identify the calibre and type of weapons being fired, with the help of software embedded in their helmets.
Engineers at Vanderbilt University's Institute for Software Integrated Systems (ISIS) have developed a system that can give soldiers just such an edge by turning their combat helmets into "smart nodes" in a wireless sensor network.
One more try to free plucky Mars rover: NASA
By DPA,
Washington : The Spirit Mars rover may have met its match in a patch of sandy soil that has ensnared it on Mars, but NASA scientists said Thursday they will make a last effort to free the little "rover that could".
Spirit is one of two rovers that have far exceeded expectations and are now in their sixth year after an expected 90-day mission, exploring the Martian surface and making important discoveries about water on the Red Planet.
Chandigarh on track to become ‘solar city’
By IANS,
Chandigarh : The union territory of Chandigarh is all set to become a "solar city" and reduce its dependence on conventional and non-renewable energy resources, officials said here Wednesday.
The administration here has nearly finalised the draft plan for extensively utilising solar energy in collaboration with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).
To finalise the modalities of this project, a meeting was held between officials of the union territory and TERI Tuesday evening.
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.
Microsoft loses as Toronto firm wins claim over Word patent
By IANS,
Toronto : Ruling against Microsoft, the US Patent and Trademark Office Tuesday confirmed a patent held by
Toronto-based i4i Inc. The tiny Canadian company had taken the software giant to court in 2007 over violations of its patent in Word applications and won the case and got $290 million in damages last December.
The US court of appeals had upheld a lower court order banning Microsoft from selling its patent-infringing Word processing software from Jan 11. The patent pertains to the use of technology that can open documents using the XML computer programming language.
NASA postpones Endeavour launch
By IANS,
Washington : US space agency NASA Sunday postponed the launch of its space shuttle Endeavour by at least one day due to a low cloud ceiling over Kennedy Space Centre in Florida.
Launch managers initially plan for a 24-hour turnaround, but will evaluate Monday's weather before making a final decision. Next possible launch attempt is 0914 GMT Monday, Xinhua reported.
Molecule sized data storage for computers in offing
By IANS,
London : Computers are getting smaller as the race is on to develop memory formats that store huge information in progressively tinier substances. Now Researchers are exploring ways of exploiting properties of carbon nanotubes to create a cheap, compact memory cell that uses little power and writes information at high speeds.
Elena Bichoutskaia of the School of Chemistry, Nottingham University, who is leading the study, said: "The electronics industry is searching for a replacement of silicon-based technologies for data storage and computer memory.
French astronaut tends mini garden in space
By Xinhua
Beijing : A French astronaut is tending a miniature garden on the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the first experiment inside the orbiting laboratory's new European research module.
European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Leopold Eyharts is growing tiny seedlings inside the space station's Columbus laboratory, which he helped deliver during last month's STS-122 shuttle flight.
Sunlight can damage your eyes
By IANS,
London : Sunlight doesn't just damage your skin, it can also ruin your eyes and increase the risk of cataract and damage to the retina.
The best way of protecting eyes is always to wear quality sunglasses, reports express.co.uk.
A research in Britain has, however, found that over 60 percent of Britons are influenced by fashion and price rather than whether or not the glasses are effective.
Protecting children's eyes is especially important, yet nearly half of parents put cost ahead of protection.
Total solar eclipse viewed in Bangladesh
By Xinhua,
Dhaka : The long-awaited total solar eclipse was observed Wednesday morning in northwestern Bangladesh that lasted for little more than three minutes.
Despite the cloudy weather, tens of thousands of astronomy enthusiasts gathered in the South Asian country's northwestern Panchagarh district, about 440 km from here, observed the greatest celestial spectacle of the century.
Panchagarh district, the nearest town to the central line of the Umbra was earlier declared as the Capital of the Total Solar Eclipse 2009 in Bangladesh.
Telescope captures galactic super volcanic explosion
By IANS,
London : A spectacular "super volcano" that erupted trillions of miles away from earth has been clicked by a NASA telescope.
The staggering eruption was filmed by NASA's Chandra X-Ray Observatory and the National Science Foundation's Very Large Array.
Astronomers said shock waves between a giant black hole and cooling gas, caused the mind boggling explosion, reports the Telegraph.
The explosion then blasted through the "massive" Messier 87 galaxy more than 50 million light years away. One light year is the equivalent of 5.9 trillion miles.
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.
Clouds may cast shadow on solar eclipse day
By IANS,
New Delhi : Scientists, students, corporate executives and housewives -- almost everyone is excited about watching the total solar eclipse Wednesday. But the weather may play spoilsport in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and New Delhi -- cloudy skies and the possibility of rain might make viewing the celestial spectacle difficult.
The national capital experienced showers Tuesday afternoon, bringing smiles to people's faces but at the same time narrowing the possibilities of clear skies on the eclipse day Wednesday.
Egg-sized robots to monitor N-plants
By IANS,
Washington : Now small, hen-egg sized robots, can directly monitor nuclear reactors and pinpoint corrosion.
Optical transmission key to secure, rapid indoor communications
By IANS,
Washington : Light is better than radio waves when it comes to some wireless communications, a new study has found.
Optical communications systems could provide faster, more secure communications with wider bandwidth and would be suitable for restricted areas like hospitals, aircraft and factories.
Sending information via light waves either in physical light guides or wirelessly is not new, but existing wireless systems either require direct line of sight or are diffused and have low signal strength.
Delhi Metro deploys ‘record’ 14 tunnel boring machines
By IANS
New Delhi : As many as 14 tunnel boring machines (TBMs) will be deployed simultaneously for laying out the Delhi Metro network in time for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) said no country in Asia has so far put to work so many TBMs at the same time.
"For the first time in any Asian city, 14 TBMs will be used simultaneously for making metro tunnels," DMRC chief spokesman Anuj Dayal told IANS Tuesday.
Microsoft offers free trial of Windows 8
By IANS,
London : Microsoft gave reviewers and the public their first taste of its revolutionary new operating system Windows 8, the Daily Mail reported Thursday.
China for ‘constructive role’ in Iranian nuclear talks
By Xinhua,
Sanya (China) : China has expressed its willingness to play a "constructive role" in the negotiations on the Iranian nuclear crisis.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said his country respects Iran's nuclear programme meant for peaceful purposes and is willing to play a mediator's role in the talks to resolve the standoff.
Technology vital to counter terror: PM
By IANS,
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday said the role of technology in supporting India's counter terrorism and internal security efforts was not being given adequate emphasis and there was need for greater investment in security technologies.
Fast breeder reactor has quite a few firsts
By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Chennai : The 500-MW prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) fast coming up at Kalpakkam, 80 km from here, has several firsts to its credit.
"For the first time in the country's nuclear power plant construction history, components are being fabricated on site owing to their huge size and weight," Prabhat Kumar, project director, Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited (Bhavini) told IANS.
Atlantis astronauts end third spacewalk
By DPA,
Washington : Two astronauts from the space shuttle Atlantis ended the mission's third and last spacewalk after successfully installing an oxygen tank on the outside of the International Space Station (ISS).
The spacewalk on Monday lasted five hours and 42 minutes for astronauts Robert Satcher Jr and Randy Bresnik, who also performed other maintenance upgrades.
Atlantis is scheduled to begin its return journey to Earth on Wednesday, with touchdown at Cape Canaveral expected on Saturday.
Three decades of circling the sky
By IANS,
New Delhi : Thirty-one years back India's first satellite Aryabhatta was launched via Russian space vehicle Intercosmos. Monday India's own rocket created history by placing 10 satellites including eight from other countries in orbit around the earth.
India's space odyssey started in April 1975 as an experiment. Today, it is a multipurpose commercial programme.
Here are the high points of India's space programme:
1975: First Indian satellite Aryabhatta launched on April 19, 1975. It provided technological experience in building and operating a satellite system.
Spacewalkers work outside International Space Station
By DPA,
Cape Canaveral (Florida) : Two US astronauts left the safety of the International Space Station Thursday to install spare parts that will help it continue running smoothly in the future.
Space shuttle Atlantis crew members Michael Foreman and Robert Satcher spent six hours and 37 minutes on the spacewalk.
They installed a backup antenna to the outside of the station and completed other maintenance with extra time to spare, NASA said.
Twitter may allow app advertisers use video
New York: App ads on Twitter may soon have the option to be video-based, the microblogging site has announced.
In a blog post celebrating one...
No funds for Malaysia’s space programme
By IANS,
Kuala Lumpur : Six months after sending its first man into space, Malaysia says it has no funds for the second phase of its ambitious space programme.
It is "zero cash" for the moment till the entire programme is re-evaluated in terms of knowledge and cost-benefit, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Maximus Ongkili told the media Monday.
In the first phase of the programme, Sheikh Muszaphar Sheikh Shukor and two other astronauts blasted into space in a Russian-built Soyuz 11 rocket from Baikonour in Kazakhstan Oct 10, 2007.
US pulls Patriot missile systems from Turkey
Ankara : The US has decided to withdraw its border protection mission in Turkey which was deployed against possible threats from Syria, a...
Tech-savvy British students forgetting how to write
By Venkata Vemuri, IANS,
London : Writing in long-hand is becoming a vanishing art among British students, thanks to mobile texting and computer literacy.
So acute is the problem that thousands of them are asking for 'scribes' to write their examination papers for them.
Education groups are now asking for introduction of hand-writing classes to see that students do not altogether forget how to write, more so during examination time.
Japanese brewery claims to have the world’s first ‘space beer’
By DPA,
Tokyo : A Japanese brewery claimed Tuesday it has produced the world's first space beer using barley grown in space.
The grain was grown in a Russian laboratory on board the International Space Station, Sapporo brewery said.
The company has brewed only 100 litres of the extraterrestrial brew, which it says is not meant for sale.
Thirty people will be chosen in a lottery to sample a few millilitres each of the beer in January; the rest will be used for research.
Tests showed the beer was safe, the company said, and it tastes normal.
Indian scientists devise new technique to hasten rescue of air-crash victims
By K.S.Jayaraman, Gandhinagar: In a technique that could be of immense global interest, Indian scientists have devised a method to not only predict the...
Indian American finds mastermind behind formation of our skin
By IANS,
Washington : An Indian American researcher has discovered the genetic mastermind that controls skin formation. The finding could help address skin disorders like eczema, psoriasis and wrinkles.
Skin is actually the largest organ in the human body, and has important functions in protecting people from infection, toxins, microbes and solar radiation.
Apple, Intel join Google in bidding for Nortel patents
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : Auction for thousands of wireless technology patents belonging to failed telecom giant Nortel began Monday.
Russia launches Proton-M carrier rocket with military satellite
By Ria Novosti
Moscow : A Russian Proton-M carrier rocket carrying a military satellite has been launched from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan, Russia's space agency (Roskosmos) said on Sunday.
The Proton-M carrier rocket with a Kosmos satellite was launched at 3:16 a.m. Moscow time (00:16 a.m. GMT) on Sunday. The carrier rocket is expected to put the satellite into orbit at 12:17 p.m. Moscow time (09:17 a.m. GMT), Roskosmos said.
Pakistani scientists hook up to peers across the globe
By IANS,
Brussels : Pakistani scientists and researchers are now connected to colleagues across the globe, courtesy two of the world's most powerful computers, the European Commission said.
Pakistani scientists will now be able to connect to the world through GEANT, the world's fastest computer network dedicated to research and education, and TEIN, the Asian counterpart, Viviane Reding, European Commissioner for information society and media, said Tuesday.
Scientists pinpoint presence of female sex hormone in plant
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have unearthed female sex hormone progesterone in a plant, upsetting conventional wisdom that only animals secreted it.
A steroid hormone produced by the ovaries, progesterone prepares the uterus for pregnancy and maintains it. A synthetic version, progestin, is used in birth control pills and other medications.
"The significance of the unequivocal identification of progesterone cannot be overstated," said the study by Guido F. Pauli, College of Pharmacy, Chicago and colleagues.
Space shuttle Endeavour heads for home
By SPA
Houston : Space shuttle Endeavour headed for home on Wednesday after delivering a Japanese module and a Canadian robot to the International Space Station.
Its 16-day mission was scheduled to end with a landing at Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 7:05 p.m. EDT (2305 GMT), 33 minutes before sundown, Reuters reported.
Weather forecasts looked favorable and the shuttle was in good shape except for a small nick in the windshield, possibly caused by space debris, said flight director Richard Jones.
India’s Internet access hit after cable damage off Egypt
By IANS
Bangalore/New Delhi : India's Internet connectivity was disrupted Thursday after two undersea cables were damaged in the Mediterranean, although IT majors reported no impact on business. Smaller companies and individual surfers would, however, have to make do with slower speeds till the cables are repaired.
"Slow connectivity, choking and other problems have been caused across India due the cable damage," Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) President Rajesh Chharia said, adding it may take 10-15 days for normalcy to be restored.
Up above the world so high, tracking satellites in the sky
By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Chennai : S.K. Shivakumar is 55 years old. For 32 years out of that, he has been the eyes and ears of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Shivakumar has lost count of the number of satellites he has tracked, but he thinks he is nearing his half century.
As the director, ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (Istrac), he is eagerly awaiting the Wednesday morning launch of India's first lunar orbiter Chandrayaan, so that he can start tracking it in slow motion.
Obama may abandon NASA’s moon mission plan
By IANS,
Washington : NASA's plan to send another mission to the moon by 2020 may take a U-turn as US President Barack Obama is expected to propose the closure of the space agency's programme in his new budget to be presented before the Congress Monday.
With the release of President Obama's budget request, NASA will finally get the new marching orders, and there won't be anything in there about flying to the moon, The Washington Post reported.
Tiny gold clusters can help clean car exhaust
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers are exploiting gold's exceptional ability to catalyse a wide variety of chemical reactions, including conversion of the poisonous pollutant carbon monoxide into carbon dioxide at room temperatures.
That process, in industrial terms, could potentially improve the effectiveness of catalytic converters that clean automobile exhaust and breathing devices, protecting miners and firefighters.
For this purpose, nanoclusters - gold atoms bound together in crystals smaller than a strand of DNA - are the size most treasured.
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.
Other universes exist alongside our own
By IANS,
London : Scientists say they have found evidence that our universe was 'jostled' by other parallel universes in the distant past.
BITS to offer technology course for Maytas employees
By IANS
Hyderabad : Maytas Infra Ltd, a Hyderabad-based construction and infrastructure development company Friday entered into a strategic partnership with BITS-Pilani, a global leader in technology education to offer off-campus work-integrated learning programmes to Maytas employees.
The initiative is named as M-BITS. P.K. Madhav, CEO, Maytas Infra and L.K. Maheshwari, vice chancellor, BITS Pilani signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to this effect here Friday.
Yahoo! hosting 24-hour ‘hacking’ event in India’s tech hub
By IANS,
Bangalore : Global search engine Yahoo! is hosting a non-stop 24-hour "hacking" event from Saturday noon in this tech hub where about 300 whiz-kids will use its web tools and services to develop new applications, a company official said Friday.
"About 300 developers across India will participate in the 24-hour hacking event, which involves using our web tools, services and application programming interfaces (APIs) to innovate new solutions for our global netizens," Yahoo! India Research and Development Head Shouvick Mukherjee told IANS here.
Facebook grows, makes a profit
By DPA,
San Francisco : Facebook, the world's largest social network on the internet, is finally turning a profit, the privately held company said.
The Silicon Valley, California, company, which was started six years ago by a student at Harvard University, said late Tuesday that it had reached a positive cash flow for the first time and also passed the 300-million user mark.
The stratospheric growth in the site's user base from 150 million at the start of the year, allowed the company to turn a profit earlier than the 2010 date it had previously predicted.
Last tune-up for Hubble telescope before space shuttle launch
By IANS,
Washington : From a fuzzy beginning nearly 20 years ago, Hubble Space Telescope has now revolutionised astronomy, its stunning images stirring global imagination.
But as the International Year of Astronomy dawns, the renowned telescope is preparing for its final chapter, starting with the scheduled May 12 launch of the space shuttle Atlantis for NASA's fifth and final service mission to the telescope.
India to launch satellite for measuring greenhouse gas emissions
By IANS,
New Delhi : India will launch a dedicated satellite by 2012 for measuring greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and aerosols, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said Tuesday.
"India needs to have an aggressive domestic method to check emissions as this will benefit us while negotiating at the international forum. We are planning to launch a satellite to study GHG emissions," Ramesh told reporters.
India is also planning to launch a satellite by 2013 for assessment of forest cover in the country.
NASA, Europeans plan new missions to Jupiter, Saturn
By Xinhua,
Washington : The US space agency NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) would conduct missions to Jupiter, Saturn and many moons that circle the planets, the agencies announced.
The missions include sending multiple spacecraft to the Jupiter and Saturn systems to explore the planets and their unique satellites, such as Jupiter's ice-covered Europa and Saturn's shrouded moon Titan.
Iranian Scientists produce mouse using stem cells
By NNN-IRNA
Scientists of Iran’s Royan Research Center have successfully produced a mouse using embryonic stem cells.
Director of the center's stem cells group, Hossein Baharvand, said that in the next phase, the experts are expected to produce mice with specific characteristics by genetically changing the mouse embryonic stem cells.
"The mechanism could be used in studying the performance of a specific gene in a living body," Baharvand said.
Launch of UAE satellite postponed
By IANS,
Dubai : The launch of the United Arab Emirates' first remote sensing satellite DubaiSat-1, scheduled Saturday, has been postponed to July 29, WAM news agency reported.
The Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) announced that the launch was postponed by the launching company -- International Space Company (Cosmotras) -- to undertake some safety and security tests.
Clouds, fog hide meteor shower view in Delhi
By IANS
New Delhi : A rare celestial event, the Geminid meteor shower, was visible across most of India Friday night, but sadly the grand annual celestial spectacle could not be seen in Delhi due to a cloudy and foggy sky.
"Not only Delhi, but places like Mumbai and other northern Indian cities will not view this development properly. Sky watchers in the capital will miss out the event due mainly to fog, clouds and light pollution (excessive city lights)," Nehru Planetarium director R. Rathnasree told IANS.
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.
Bt brinjal is safe, declare scientists
By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : While the debate on Bt brinjal continues in the country, scientists who arrived here to take part in a two-day seminar Monday said the genetically modified vegetable was not only safe for consumption but also more profitable for the farmers.
Scientists from across the country are taking part in the seminar which has been jointly organised by the All India Crop Biotechnology Association (AICBA), Environment Resource Research Centre (ERRC) at Thiruvananthapuram, and Foundation for Biotechnology Awareness and Education (FBAE) at Bangalore.
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.
Venezuela uses Vietnamese method to boost rice harvest
By EFE,
Caracas : Venezuela has began a project to grow rice using Vietnamese technology, a method that replaces chemical fertilisers with fish in water channels between the rice plots.
Officials hope the crop yields would increase by as much as 30 percent after using the method.
In a national broadcast, President Hugo Chavez Wednesday praised the "great advances" in agriculture achieved by the Vietnamese, whom he called a "fighting people".
The pilot project will be carried out in a 65,000-hectare area in Apure state.
Ten Indian students leave for NASA
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Ten Indian students, winners of a competition organised by an educational website, Thursday left for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the US.
The students, along with their parents and school teachers, boarded the plane from New Delhi on their way to NASA, said a statement by Learnsmart India, the company that runs 24x7guru.com which conducted the Destination NASA Knowledge Challenge.
Fake ‘dislike’ button spreads across Facebook
By IANS,
Washington : Social networking website Facebook, which offers its subscribers only a "like" button for anyone's updates, is now faced with a fake "dislike" button, which is spreading like a virus across the site.
The fake dislike button is followed with a link that takes people to a fake application. Instead of installing a dislike button, the application uses the person's network to continue spreading the fake programme.
Graham Cluley of the British security firm Sophos wrote in a blog that the fake dislike buttons "are going viral" on Facebook.
Cloudy skies mar solar eclipse
By IANS,
New Delhi : Cloudy skies in large parts of northern and western India Wednesday marred a clear view of the century's longest total solar eclipse but the celestial spectacle was clearly visible over Varanasi.
Tens of thousands of people across the country rose early to see the eclipse that was to begin at the earliest at 5:29 a.m. and end at 7:41 a.m. in India.
It was to have been clearly visible in places like Surat, Indore, Bhopal, Varanasi, Patna, Taregna near Patna, Daman, Darjeeling, Dibrugarh, Gangtok, Gaya, Itanagar, Ujjain and Vadodra.
Martian surface hints at groundwater torrents
By Xinhua
Beijing : Scientists said surface features of the Red Planet hint at a watery past where torrents of groundwater carved out deep canyons, formed sweeping fans of sediment and cemented together huge fault lines, media reported Tuesday.
"Groundwater probably played a major role in shaping many of the things we see on the Martian surface," said George Postma, a sedimentologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands.
Beijing : Scientists said surface features of the Red Planet hint at a watery past where torrents of groundwater carved out deep canyons, formed sweeping fans of sediment and cemented together huge fault lines, media reported Tuesday.
"Groundwater probably played a major role in shaping many of the things we see on the Martian surface," said George Postma, a sedimentologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands.
European team discovers smallest extrasolar planet
By IANS,
London : A European satellite has discovered the smallest planet outside of our solar system, which is twice as large as earth and orbiting a star slightly smaller than the sun.
The planet is believed to be composed of rock and water, and takes 20 hours to orbit its host star, the shortest orbital period of all exoplanets found so far.
Astronomers infer its temperature over 1,000 degree Celsius, hot enough to make it covered in lava or superheated water vapour.
Avesthagen founder receives top French award
By IANS,
Bangalore : Villoo Morawala Patell, founder-chairperson of India's leading life sciences firm Avesthagen Ltd, was late Wednesday honoured with a top civilian award by the French government for her entrepreneurship and significant contribution in the scientific field.
The Officier de L'Ordre National du Merite" (Officer of the National Order of Merit) award was presented to Patell by French ambassador to India Jerome Bonnafont at a felicitation ceremony here.
Only one hacking in last three years: Antony
By IANS,
New Delhi: India's defence establishment has recorded only one breach of security by hackers from outside in the last three years, parliament was informed Wednesday.
Now a helicopter with spinning disc instead of blades
By IANS,
Washington : The US defence department is funding a radical helicopter design called the DiscRotor that would have a spinning disc instead of conventional spinning rotor blades at high speeds.
The DiscRotor, which is being funded by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), would have a large circular saucer-like hub on top with retractable rotor blades extending from the saucer's edge.
Big Bang experiment invites public to unravel secrets of universe
By Heather Lima, DPA
Geneva : On Sunday, more than 30,000 people are expected to visit what's described as the world's biggest scientific experiment when the European Centre for Nuclear Research (CERN) opens its underground doors for just one day before trying to unravel the secrets of the universe.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the most powerful particle accelerator ever constructed, is located in a 27-km circular tunnel 100 metres below ground level just outside Geneva on the Franco-Swiss border.
Plant hormone that controls shoot branching discovered
By IANS,
Sydney : The discovery of a new plant hormone that controls shoot branching is likely to impact forestry, plant science and agriculture industries.
A molecule with a specific four-ring structure in plant hormone strigolactone has been shown to inhibit shoot branching in plants.
"It could be used to increase yield in horticultural industries and manual pruning may be circumvented through the use of the natural strigolactones," said principal investigator Christine Beveridge of University of Queensland (UQ).
Chinese software industry sees opportunity in Microsoft’s anti-piracy move
By Cheng Zhiliang and Quan Xiaoshu, Xinhua,
Beijing : When Microsoft noticed "misunderstandings" among the Chinese public over its "black screen" move to crack down on piracy, the country's domestic software industry saw opportunity and couldn't wait to embrace it.
A Kingsoft public relations manager said there were currently up to 120,000 daily Internet downloads of "WPS Office," the "Microsoft Office"-like software developed by Kingsoft Corporation Limited, compared with 50,000 to 60,000 downloads before the controversial Microsoft move.
ETI Dynamics, Greenhouse Capital to export clean technology
New Delhi: New Delhi-based ETI Dynamics and Auckland-based Greenhouse Capital on Tuesday announced a partnership to invest $100 million in exporting clean technologies from...
Astronauts install ammonia tank on space station
By DPA,
Washington : Two astronauts from the space shuttle Discovery completed a more than six-hour-long spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) Friday, installing a new ammonia tank used in the cooling system, NASA said.
US astronaut John "Danny" Olivas and Swede Christer Fuglesang ended their mission successfully at 0451 GMT. They got started nearly an hour later than planned because of problems with a communications device in Olivas' spacesuit.
Now barcodes to help hone diagnostics
By IANS,
Sydney : You've seen barcodes on consumer products - now these, or something very similar, will soon be put to medical use.
Ultra-sensitive fluorescent barcodes called nanostrings, developed by Australian scientists, will greatly hone diagnostics and clinical development, according to a new study.
The nanostring will enable a more accurate detection of molecules associated with particular diseases and will be able to identify new molecules associated with diseases, said Krassen Dimitrov of the University of Queensland.
Armoured Mist Frog resufaces 17 years after ‘extinction’
By IANS,
Sydney : Researchers have stumbled on a frog species not seen for the past 17 years in a remote location in far North Queensland.
Ross Alford of the James Cook University informed it was feared that the Armoured species had been lost in the devastating outbreaks of amphibian chytrid fungus that started in the Wet Tropics 20 years ago.
"But Jame Cook PhD student Robert Puschendorf working with myself and its Amphibian Disease Ecology Group has found a healthy population of the Armoured Mist Frog well outside the areas it used to inhabit," Alford said.
Wonder drug eases pressure, lifts heart
By IANS,
Washington : Employing a powerful supercomputer, researchers screened 140,000 prospective drug compounds to identify one that dramatically lowers blood pressure, improves heart function and prevents damage to the organ.
These findings could spur development of a new class of anti-hypertensive drugs to overcome two major problems associated with cardiovascular disease: high blood pressure (BP) and tissue damage or fibrosis.
Brazil, Argentina successfully complete joint space launch
By IANS
Rio de Janeiro : Brazil and Argentina have "successfully" launched a rocket carrying scientific experiments, the first joint space mission ever undertaken by the two countries, authorities said.
The launch was conducted at 6.15 a.m. (0915 GMT) Sunday from the Boca do Inferno Launch Centre in the northeastern Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Norte, Andreia Araujo, spokesperson of Brazilian Space Agency (AEB), told the Spanish news agency EFE.
Microsoft India unveils new platform for shared IT services
By IANS,
New Delhi: Global software giant Microsoft Monday unveiled a portfolio of services in India that will help companies share software and storage facilities, called cloud computing, that can bring down their total IT spend by as much as 50 percent.
Windows Azure -- the company's latest offering in the area of cloud computing -- is now available commercially in India, said Microsoft India group Director Vikas Arora. "Some 3,500 applications for Azure have been developed out of India alone," Arora told IANS.
Connect science, policy for progress on climate change: Pachauri
By DPA,
New York : The chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Monday said there remained a "glaring gap" between the policy and science on climate change.
"We need to connect science and policy," Rajendra Pachauri said at a news conference organised by the United Nations Environment Programme.
The IPCC shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 with former US vice president Al Gore.
Former African-American astronaut to head NASA
By DPA,
Washington : US President Barack Obama Saturday named Charles Bolden, a black ex-astronaut, to lead the US space agency into its next chapter that could take it back to the moon.
The retired Marine Corps general, 62, flew four times in the space shuttle in the '80s and '90s - two times as mission commander. His nomination must be approved by the Senate.
Former NASA head Michael Griffin stepped down in January as Obama was entering office.
Indians wary of planning vacations on the Internet
By Madhusree Chatterjee, IANS,
New Delhi : Indian travellers are still not confident of planning their holidays online.
Call it the fear of the intangible or the chip of technology on their shoulder, Internet travel portals are yet to instil confidence in the Indian globe trotter, who prefers to fall back on offline support networks - the travel agents, says Himanshu Singh, managing director of Travelocity.
The use of e-portals is still restricted to a niche segment, the young and the Internet-savvy.
ITC Infotech deploys customer software for Finnair
Bangalore, Dec 13 (IANS) ITC Infotech Ltd, a global IT services firm of ITC group, has successfully deployed a software solution to manage customer relationships for Finnair, Finland's largest airline, the company said here Thursday.
With Infotech's software tool, Finnair becomes the world's first airline to shift from a frequent flyer management system to an analytical CRM (customer relationship management) solution, the Bangalore-based company said in a statement.
How to keep your PC cool during summer
By DPA,
Washington : Computers hate heat. So this summer, be sure to think about keeping your computer cool. Computer components themselves run hot, and yet they're not designed to operate above a certain temperature.
When the temperature outside gets uncomfortable for humans, you can be sure that your computer isn't liking the situation any better. So for a trouble-free summer of computing, take steps now to ensure that your PC stays cool.
14 cities around Delhi are quake prone
By IANS
New Delhi : The national capital and 14 cities around it, from Alwar in Rajasthan to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, are highly quake prone, the ministry of earth sciences said Monday.
The 15 cities - Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Meerut, Hapur, Panipat, Rohtak, Palwal, Bulandsehar, Khurja, Alwar, Bahadurgarh, Kundali and Rewari - fall under seismic zone 4.
Seismic zone 4 is considered to be highly prone to earthquakes.
Humans first ate fish 40,000 years ago
By IANS,
Washington : Freshwater fish remains a staple in many regions of the world, but it remains unclear when it became a year-round diet for early humans. A new study led by Erik Trinkaus, anthropology professor at Washington University, St. Louis, shows it may have happened in China as far back as 40,000 years ago.
Chemical analysis of collagen, a protein, can show whether such fish consumption was an occasional treat or a regular food item.
Astronaut takes a second, closer look at Brahmaputra
By IANS,
Guwahati : US astronaut Mike Fincke Tuesday took a close look here at the river Brahmaputra, which he had viewed from space some months ago.
"I saw the Brahmaputra from space. Today I have seen it with my own eyes. It is indeed a pleasure to be by the side of this great river," Fincke told IANS.
Fincke and his wife Renita, an engineer with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), arrived here to attend a series of functions.
The visit is special for the couple as Renita originally hails from Assam.
Microsoft-Yahoo deal faces tough scrutiny
By Arun Kumar, IANS,
Washington: Microsoft and Yahoo's blockbuster deal to form a 10-year partnership in Internet search and advertising is expected to face tough scrutiny with US authorities taking a hard look at consolidation in the hi-tech industry.
Already, Congress has shown interest in the deal with Democrat Senator Herb Kohl, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, saying the partnership "warrants our careful scrutiny".
Water found on Jupiter moon
By IANS,
Washington : NASA's Galileo spacecraft has found evidence of water beneath the icy surface of Jupiter's moon Europa, researchers said.
Internet users reveal more to those they trust
By IANS
London : Here's good news for online vendors. Internet users are not chary of revealing personal information online - provided they trust the person requesting the information, a new study says.
The study, by Britain's Economic and Social Research Council, found that even those "who have previously demonstrated a high level of caution" online will reveal personal information "if they trust the recipient" of the information.
Canada to get world’s first supercomputer outside the US
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : Toronto university and the IBM have joined hands to build Canada's most powerful and energy- efficient supercomputer yet.
Capable of performing 360 trillion calculations per second, the proposed super device will give a competitive edge to Canada in global research projects, including investigation of the forces that govern the universe.
Maveric Systems develops automated software test tool
By IANS
Chennai : Targeting a higher share in the $8 billion Indian offshore testing opportunity, Chennai-based independent software testing company Maveric Systems Limited has come out with an automated software testing tool.
Developed at an investment of around $1 million, the proprietary software tool called Testac promises to reduce software testing time by 30 percent, CEO Ranga Reddy told reporters.
According to him, Maveric Systems is the only Indian software testing company to have such a proprietary tool.
Kashmir varsity produces world’s first cloned pashmina goat
By IANS,
Srinagar : Scientists at the agricultural university in the Jammu and Kashmir capital have successfully produced the world's first cloned pashmina goat, a statement said Tuesday.
NASA’s new satellite to search for undiscovered objects
By DPA,
Washington : NASA's newest "eye" to be launched Wednesday is a satellite equipped with unprecedented infrared sensitivity to scope out cosmic objects unseen by other cameras.
The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, is to be launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
Over the next nine months in orbit around the north and south poles, the satellite is to scan the entire sky one and a half times seeking out the "coolest stars, dark asteroids and the most luminous galaxies," NASA said.
Hands-free technology for twiteratti while driving
By IANS,
London : British motorists would soon be able to use online blogging network Twitter while driving with new hands-free technology from car company Ford.
The system, called AppLink, allows applications on iPhones and BlackBerries to be voice-controlled, reports dailymail.co.uk.
It reads 'tweet' updates out loud while the car is on the move - but does not allow the driver to respond.
India’s FlockPod stretches social networking horizon
By V. Vijayalakshmi, IANS
Pune : If you thought social networking sites like MySpace, Orkut and Facebook were the ultimate places to interact with people, think again. An Indian company has gone a step further with FlockPod, an innovative social networking application.
The Harbinger Group, which created the FlockPod, says it is the world's first social interaction pod - a small place on any web page where people get together and interact on the spot while staying on the page.
India to witness partial lunar eclipse June 26
By IANS,
New Delhi : Look towards the east after sunset Sunday and you will see upper part of moon's disk darkened as parts of India witness a partial lunar eclipse.
The lunar eclipse is visible in eastern Asia, Australia, Antarctica, parts of the Americas and the Pacific Ocean, a statement from Ministry of Earth Sciences said Wednesday. This eclipse would be the last one in 2010 for India.
"Visibility in India will be at the end of the eclipse. The ending of the eclipse is visible from the extreme northeastern states at the time of moonrise during the eclipse," it said.
After US tests, India to get first e-passport in June
By Devirupa Mitra, IANS,
New Delhi : India's first e-passport, which will make travel easy, is expected to be issued next month.
It will be issued to diplomats and officials first. Others may have to wait for about 10 months -- or even more.
If all goes well, the first e-passport will be issued around June 15 to President Pratibha Patil or Prime Minister Manmohan Singh -- or both.
The e-passport project is on a roll. A recent test conducted in a US government laboratory was so impressive that American officials remarked that they would need to study the Indian technology.
NASA postpones launch of Dawn space probe
By DPA
Washington : The Dawn space probe's five billion km journey to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter will begin a day later than planned, the US space agency NASA announced.
The spacecraft's launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket has been postponed from Wednesday until Thursday morning. The blastoff is now scheduled for a launch window of 7.20 a.m. to 7.49 a.m. Thursday.
Researchers develop membrane to filter natural gas impurities
By DPA
Singapore : Researchers have developed a membrane that filters impurities such as carbon dioxide from natural gas, the National University of Singapore said Wednesday.
The result is a cleaner and more efficient source of energy, said Raj Rajagopalan. Up to 98 percent of impurities can be filtered out through the pores of the membrane.
"The idea of membrane separation is to use molecularly engineered materials and make thin films to the structure that we want," Rajagopalan said.
India getting ready to watch an eclipsed sun
By IANS,
New Delhi/Taregna/Surat : The wait to witness a once-in-a-lifetime celestial phenomenon ends at dawn Wednesday when an eclipsed sun rises over the horizon. And tens of thousands of people all over India are getting ready to wake up to a shaded sunrise and gather at rooftops, planetariums and parks to watch the century's longest total solar eclipse.
The total eclipse, which starts at sunrise in Surat in Gujarat, is expected to last six minutes and 44 seconds, making it the longest till 2132.
Scientists unveil bionic eye for future implantation
By IANS,
Sydney : Scientists have unveiled a bionic eye for future implantation in patients.
The prototype, developed by Bionic Vision Australia (BVA) researchers at the University of New South Wales, will deliver improved quality of life for patients suffering from degenerative vision loss caused by retinitis pigmentosa and age-related macular degeneration.
Macular degeneration is a condition that causes loss of vision in older adults by damaging the retina.
Women better than men in clinching business deals
By IANS,
London : Although few women occupy top slots in corporate hierarchies, a new study shows that they may be more accomplished in negotiations than their masculine counterparts.
Yael Itzhaki of Tel Aviv University carried out simulations of business negotiations among 554 Israeli and American management students at Ohio State University and in Israel, reported EurekAlert.
Finally, a breakthrough on how to harness solar power
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers at the MIT have found a new way to store solar power, a major breakthrough in the search to use the sun and serve the Earth's energy needs in a clean and sustainable way.
Every hour, the sun pours down enough radiation to serve the Earth's energy needs for a year. The trouble is to store that energy cheaply and use it whenever needed.
37 mummies found in Mexico
By IANS/EFE,
Mexico City : Restoration work on a church and a cathedral in the central Mexican city of Zacatecas has led to the finding of 37 mummified bodies and a Bible from 1575 written in several languages, authorities said.
The mummies were found in the Church of Santo Domingo, along with a small stairway leading to a grotto in which the skeleton of a Spanish colonial official was resting, the Zacatecas state government said Tuesday.
Google, Microsoft ‘most discussed tech brands’ in India
By NNN-PTI,
New Delhi : Internet search giant Google and software major Microsoft are among the most discussed technology brands in India, dominating most of the online conversations, says a survey.
Topped by Google, the list of top 10 technology brands compiled by research firm Edelman, features Microsoft at the second spot while Yahoo! has cornered the third position.
Google and Microsoft secured about 20 per cent and 12 per cent of all monitored conversations respectively, according to Digital Brand Index (DBI) for India compiled by Edelman in collaboration with Brandtology.
Facebook trains self-help groups in Telangana
Hyderabad: Facebook on Friday launched a training programme for rural self-help groups (SHGs) in Telangana to equip them with technological knowledge to promote their...
Household robots? Sooner than you think
By Saurabh Yadav, IANS,
New Delhi : As tech companies around the world - and in India - develop smarter robots, it is only a matter of time before the big three of housework - vacuuming/cleaning, dishwashing and cooking - are done successfully by robots, thus liberating urban households from dependence on the almighty housemaid.
Japanese auto giant Toyota has announced that it intends to start selling next-generation household robots by 2010 and the South Korean government has said that it aims at having a robot in each home by 2013.
Technology to help crops use saltwater being developed
By IANS,
Sydney : Technology being developed by the University of New South Wales could offer new hope to farmers in drought-hit areas by enabling them to grow crops by using salty groundwater.
Greg Leslie, of University's UNESCO Centre for Membrane Science and Technology, is working with the University of Sydney on technology which uses reverse-osmosis membranes to turn previously useless, brackish groundwater into a valuable agricultural resource.
Chandrayaan-1 was a fantastic success: European scientist
By K.S. Jayaraman, IANS,
Bangalore : Indian media should stop criticising the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for abruptly terminating Chandrayaan-1 and instead applaud the success of its moon mission, a European space scientist has said.
Although its life was cut short, ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 was a "fantastic success", Detlef Koschny, European Chandrayaan-1 project scientist, said in an e-mail interview. Chandrayaan-1 had carried three scientific payloads of the European Space Agency (ESA).
Stellar blast gamma ray was aimed at earth: NASA
By Xinhua,
Washington : Data from satellites and observatories around the globe show a jet from a powerful stellar explosion witnessed March 19 was aimed almost directly at the Earth, the US space agency NASA has reported.
NASA's Swift satellite detected the explosion - formally named GRB 080319B - and pinpointed its position in the constellation Bootes. The event, called a gamma-ray burst, became bright enough for human eyes to see.
Observations of the event are giving astronomers the most detailed portrait of a burst ever recorded.
Andhra signs MoU with TISS to improve students’ employability
Hyderabad: The government of Andhra Pradesh on Saturday signed an MoU with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to increase employability of students...
Vietnam’s first satellite successfully launched after 13-year preparation
By Thai Thanhvan, Xinhua,
Hanoi : After 13 years of unceasing efforts, Vietnam's first satellite was successfully launched Saturday, ushering a new era for the local information communication technology industry.
The 2.6-ton medium-sized satellite, Vinasat-1, was successfully launched to its geostationary orbit position using rocket Ariane-5in Kourou site in French Guiana at 5:16 a.m. Saturday (2016 GMT Friday).
New technique to compress light opens doors to optical computing
By IANS,
Mountain View (California) : Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley have devised a way to squeeze light into tighter spaces than ever thought possible, potentially opening doors to new technology in the fields of optical communications, miniature lasers and optical computers.
3G auction won’t be delayed by global meltdown: Minister
By IANS,
New Delhi : Auction of 3G spectrum for telecommunications operators is on schedule and will not be delayed on account of a funds crunch following the global meltdown, the government said here Wednesday.
“We are not delaying the 3G auction process as of now,” Minister for Communication and IT A. Raja told reporters on the sidelines of a conference. “We are looking at the liquidity crunch in the market, we will discuss the matter with the finance minister.”
Emphasising that “no changes have been planned", Raja added: “The timeline remains the same”.
65-year-old bulb still shines, and outshines all
London, Dec 21 (IANS) It withstood German air raids on London in the second world war. It defied the British police opposed to its presence. And it continues to survive, about to outlive the store it was brought from. This is the story of a light bulb, aged 65.
The 40-watt bulb, which still works, now has the pride of place in a china cabinet at the home of Valerie Beaney, 68, whose late mother Rose Allen bought it from Woolworths in 1943.
Why close kin keep their distance in animal kingdom
By IANS,
London : Mammals cannot share their habitat with closely-related species because the need for the same kind of food and shelter would lead them to compete to the death, a new study has said.
The finding - the best evidence so far for an old Darwinian prediction - is important because habitat destruction and climate change could inadvertently force closely-related species to live closer together than before.
Soyuz’s re-entry capsule lands safely in Kazakhstan
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : The re-entry capsule of the Russian Soyuz spacecraft has landed safely in Kazakhstan's steppe Sunday, officials said.
Russian cosmonaut Gennady Padalka, NASA's (US space agency) Michael Barratt and space tourist Guy Laliberte onboard the capsule landed safely in northern Kazakh steppe.
Padalka was extracted first from the capsule, following which the other space travellers were extracted from the re-entry vehicle that landed on Earth several hours after leaving the International Space Station (ISS).
Scientists develop tool for quick analysis of water purity
By IANS,
Sydney : Researchers have developed a tool that analyses water purity within minutes, against the 20 to 48 hours required by existing methods.
The tool will boost "water safety and reduce health risk from use of contaminated water in the developing world", said David Garman, executive director of Environmental Biotechnology Cooperative Research Centre (EBCRC) at the World Water Congress in Vienna.
Jupiter possibly hit by object, NASA says
By DPA,
Washington : Jupiter appears to have again been hit by a speeding celestial object that left a giant dark scar in the giant gaseous planet's atmosphere, NASA astronomers said.
The US space agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory received a tip early Monday from Australian amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley who had spied the spot near the planet's south pole. Scientists then pointed NASA's infrared telescope in Hawaii at the planet and detected signs - including particles in the upper atmosphere and a warming of the lower atmosphere - that it may have been struck by a comet.
Gas turbine technology best for power generation in Gulf: expert
By IANS,
Dubai : Gas turbine technology is the best fossil fuel-based technology available for power generation in the Gulf, given the skyrocketing oil prices, according to a leading energy expert.
"Gas turbine technologies are the cleanest techniques within systems that use fossil fuels and are favoured in GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries due to the low cost of available natural gas," Abdullah Al-Amiri, chairman of the Emirates Energy Award, which recognizes best practices in energy conservation and management, said in a statement here.
ISRO presents Cartosat-2A images to PM
By IANS,
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was Monday presented with images of the national capital taken by the recently launched satellites Cartosat-2A and IMS-1.
A group of scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), led by its chairman G. Madhavan Nair, met Manmohan Singh and briefed him about the space programme, a statement of the science and technology ministry said.
BlackBerry Bold home launch fails to create buzz
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : Canadian wireless giant Research In Motion (RIM) quietly launched its latest BlackBerry Bold smartphone in the home country Thursday.
The BlackBerry Bold, which is considered to be RIM's response to the iPhone 3G launched here last month, didn't generate the euphoria that the Apple device created here last month.
Like the iPhone 3G, the Blackberry Bold is also supported by third-generation wireless networks.
Rogers, the country's biggest telecom service provider, will support the BlackBerry Bold service across Canada.
New technology to help drug companies save millions
By IANS,
London : A new technique will help drug companies save millions of dollars.
It is a potentially valuable tool in drug manufacture, where controlling crystal forms is crucial both to cost and product safety.
The new technology identifies and monitors changes in crystal structures on-line, providing a method of ensuring production of the desired drug compounds.
Most drug compounds are crystalline. Their structure can affect their physical attributes and performance. However, changes in these structures are caused by undetected fluctuations.
Facebook registers 200 million users
By DPA,
San Francisco : Five years after it was founded in a Harvard dorm room, the online social networking site Facebook has registered its 200 millionth user, the site confirmed Thursday.
"Growing rapidly to 200 million users is a really good start, but we've always known that in order for Facebook to help people represent everything that is happening in their world, everyone needs to have a voice," said Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
Cyber space needs rules: China
By IANS,
Beijing: Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi Saturday said that "cyber space needs rules and cooperation, not war" and stressed that China is vulnerable to cyber attacks.
Four South Asian countries agree to improve information communication
By TwoCircles.net news desk
New Delhi: Senior officials from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal have agreed to collaborate on a subregional information communication technology (ICT) project to improve connectivity among the four countries.
The agreement by the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) countries was reached at the fourth ICT working group meeting to discuss the proposed SASEC Information Highway Project in New Delhi, India on 8-9 October 2007.
PM lays foundation stone of ISRO campus in Delhi
By IANS,
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday laid the foundation stone of the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) first campus in the national capital and urged space scientists to continue their focus on need-based science for nation building.
"I am very happy to lay the foundation stone of ISRO's Space Complex in New Delhi. The complex will go a long way in fulfilling the needs for utilisation of space based services in this part of our country," Manmohan Singh said in his speech here.
EVMs cannot be manipulated, says chief election commissioner
By IANS,
Agartala: The electronic voting machines (EVM) are secure for the purpose they serve as they cannot be manipulated, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) V.S. Sampath said here Saturday.
Now, ISRO scientists develop hydrogen fuel cells to power bus
By NNN-PTI,
Bangalore, India : India's space scientists have developed hydrogen fuel cells to power an automobile bus by leveraging their know-how of the homegrown cryogenic technology for rockets.
The two-year effort has yielded positive results and the scientists are now readying for the fuel cells to be fitted into a bus.
"That's not exactly the cryogenic technology... (It's) liquid hydrogen handling and that's where we have some expertise. So, we have finalised the design", Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation, G Madhavan Nair told PTI here.
Dinosaurs survived mass extinction by 700,000 years
By IANS,
Toronto : A fossilised dinosaur bone unearthed in New Mexico shows that dinosaurs survived mass extinction by 700,000 years, according to a new dating method.
China plans third manned spaceflight in October
By RIA Novosti,
Beijing : China plans to launch its third manned space flight in October, the Xinhua news agency said on Thursday.
The Shenzhou-VII spacecraft will be manned by a crew of three Chinese astronauts or 'taikonauts,' two of which who will carry out China's first spacewalk.
Six people have been chosen for the mission - three main crew members and three back up crew.