NASA’s Phoenix retests release of Martian soil
By Xinhua,
Washington : Engineers and scientists operating NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander decided early Tuesday to repeat a practice test of releasing Martian soil from the scoop on the lander's Robotic Arm.
When the arm collected and released its first scoopful of soil on Sunday, some of the sample stuck to the scoop. The team told Phoenix Tuesday morning to lift another surface sample and release it, with more extensive imaging of the steps in the process.
Robots to race for the cookie jar in Pune contest
By IANS
Pune : The traditional Indian version of the cookie jar race is baby Krishna atop a human pyramid, reaching out to a pot of butter. It is enacted every year. This year, robots are going to do it, and they will be in a race.
The national robotic contest "Mission Govinda" to be held in Pune this weekend (March 8-9) will see 38 teams from all over the country including the IITs and regional and private engineering colleges compete in this one-of-a-kind contest at the Maharashtra Institute of Technology. Govinda is another name for Krishna.
US spy satellite might hit Earth March 6
By DPA
Geneva : The US ambassador to the United Nations warned Friday the defective US spy satellite was due to enter the Earth's atmosphere March 6 if efforts announced by the Pentagon to destroy it failed.
Christina Rocca, the US permanent Representative to the UN Conference on Disarmament, said it was not possible to say where the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) satellite would strike.
"It could occur in any region on the Earth's surface between 58.5 degrees North and 58.5 degrees South latitudes," she told a special session of the Conference in Geneva.
‘Black gold’ may revolutionise farming, curb global warming
By IANS
Washington : Scientists have discovered an extraordinary source of some of the richest, most fertile soil in the world, often called 'black gold'. They simply have to mix charcoal in the soil.
And it can battle global warming as well by holding the carbon in the soil instead of letting it escape into the atmosphere, according to a new study.
The discovery goes back 1,500 years to the central Amazon basin where tribal people mixed their soil with charcoal derived from animal bone and tree bark.
Indian software firm develops programmes for four airlines
By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : Four leading airlines have joined hands with IT firm IBS Software to launch an airline manpower management solution that will enable them to plan cost effective and efficient operation of their fleet with an optimal level of trained crew members.
Air Astana, easyJet, Malaysia Airlines and Qatar Airways together with IBS, formed the Core Group of Influence (CGI) to develop the new IT solution.
Virus of infidelity infects 76 percent of relationships: Study
By IANS,
Washington : Infidelity is widespread with people tending to cheat on their partners very often, which may be as high as 40 to 76 percent, according to a study.
The probability of someone cheating... (is) very high," said Geneviève Beaulieu-Pelletier, doctoral student at the Université de Montréal's Department of Psychology.
Did you know you can access your computer from anywhere?
By Nabeel A. Khan, IANS,
New Delhi : Did you know that through the Internet you can access your computer from almost anywhere?
Relatively few of us have taken advantage of facilities like Google Document, Zoho Offline Office or Hotmail co-founder Sabeer Bhatia's Live Document.
These provide softwares like Word, Excel or Power Point. You can use them without having MS office installed in your PC.
ISRO, NASA tie up for space exploration
By IANS,
New Delhi : The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has joined hands with the US's National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for space explorations, parliament was informed Wednesday.
Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office Prithviraj Chavan said the framework agreement was signed between the two space research organisations for cooperation in the “exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes”.
Understanding IP addresses in computers
By DPA,
Washington : Internet Protocol or IP addresses are common in today's world of networked computers. That's because every computer connected to a single network has an IP.
An IP address is a number that uniquely identifies a computer on a network. Every computer that's connected to a network, whether that network is the Internet or a private home or office network, has a unique IP address.
New technology to detect forged signatures
By IANS
Washington : Think twice if you are about to forge a signature. A newly developed technology will help forensic specialists find out when you signed a cheque, the pen you used, and the origin of the ink.
The technology that is used at present can only trace the ink if a piece of the document is soaked in certain solutions.
Washington : Think twice if you are about to forge a signature. A newly developed technology will help forensic specialists find out when you signed a cheque, the pen you used, and the origin of the ink.
The technology that is used at present can only trace the ink if a piece of the document is soaked in certain solutions.
mPire of Hasan Ahmad wins Lockheed Martin Innovation Award
(Hasan Ahmad is a Bangalore-based young software engineer whose company mPower has recently won the prestigious Lockheed Martin India Innovation 2008 Award from U.S. aerospace major Lockheed Martin for a software automation product called mPire. In this interview with our Assistant Editor Tariq Anwar, he talks about his company and the award.)
3G, Wimax guidelines in a week: minister
By IANS,
New Delhi : The broad guidelines for implementation and auctioning of radio spectrum for 3G and Wimax have been devised and the final draft will be approved and released within a week, telecom minister A. Raja said here Friday.
"Broad guidelines for rolling out 3G services have been devised and we need some inputs from the finance ministry after which the guidelines will be forwarded to the Telecom Commission," Raja told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
"Expect the final norms to be announced within a week," he added.
Yahoo! India’s Glue Pages bring new search experience
By Frederick Noronha, IANS,
Bangalore : Searching the net might become quite a different experience thanks to an experiment from Yahoo! India called Glue that yields results with visual information.
Search in.glue.yahoo.com for the term 'India', for example, and what you find is news, images, links, maps, and even sponsored ads -- all related to the second-most populous country on the planet.
"Glue Pages unite your classic search results with visual information from the best sites anywhere on the Web," said Yahoo! India, while recently unveiling this way of finding information.
Fish may have taught us how to make a sound
By IANS,
Washington : Human speech skills and possibly all sound production in vertebrates could be traced back to similar abilities in fish, according to a study by US researchers.
Researchers from Cornell University mapped developing brain cells in newly hatched midshipman fish larvae and compared them to those of other species and found that the neural network behind sound production in vertebrates could be traced back to an era long before the first animals ventured onto dry land.
No spaceship, yet NASA wants more astronauts
By IANS,
Washington : America's space organisation NASA has launched a massive recruitment drive to find new astronauts, despite not having its own spaceship for them to fly.
Ancient ocean-floor sediment shows asteroid sizes
By Xinhua,
Beijing : Countless asteroids have struck Earth during its multi-billion-year history, leaving few clues to their size because they vaporize on impact and leave no crater or fall into the ocean.
However, a new study suggests the asteroids may have left behind certain chemical traces in ancient ocean-floor sediments that can act as a telltale sign of their impact and record what was floating around in the seawater in the distant geologic past.
What to look for in a photo printer
By DPA,
Washington : the best digital camera on the block, but that won't matter if your prints are no good. The fact is that to get the most out of digital photography, you need to devote as much time to learning about photo printers as you do about digital cameras.
Part of the challenge lies in knowing which photo printer will best suit your needs. Another part is understanding which features that are commonly touted by printer manufacturers really matter.
New therapy against cancer
Santiago : An innovative immunological therapy that attacks carcinogenic cells in humans by increasing the body's anti-tumour response was presented in Santiago city in...
NASA schedules final shuttle launches through 2010
By SPA,
Washington : The US space agency NASA issued a schedule Monday for the final 10 shuttle programme missions in 2009-10, DPA reported.
The list includes one launch to the Hubble Space Telescope, seven missions to continue construction on the orbiting International Space Station and two unspecified flights available for unspecified purposes.
Infosys net up in rupees, down in dollars
Bengaluru: Global software major Infosys Ltd on Tuesday reported five percent net profit growth year-on-year (YoY) in rupee terms but a 1.3 percent YoY...
NASA’s Mars rover Spirit begins new chapter
By IANS,
Washington : After six years of unprecedented exploration, NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Spirit will no longer be a fully mobile robot.
NASA has designated the once-roving scientific explorer a stationary science platform after efforts during the past several months to free it from a sand trap were unsuccessful.
The venerable robot's primary task in the next few weeks will be to position itself to combat the severe Martian winter.
Revolutionary fuel cell design to make cheaper vehicles feasible
By IANS,
Sydney : A reworked design of fuel cells used in the latest hybrid cars will help make vehicles more reliable and cheaper to build in the future.
The breakthrough is based on the inclusion of a specially-coated form of popular outdoor and sporting clothing material Goretex in the fuel cell.
Monash University scientists have designed and tested an air-electrode, where a fine layer 100 times thinner than human hair of highly conductive plastic is deposited on the breathable fabric. The conductive plastic acts as both the fuel cell electrode and catalyst.
Scientists devise ‘pacemaker’ for brain
By IANS,
Washington : Disorders such as depression or Parkinson's may be helped by stimulating certain areas of the brain with controlled precision, says a study, encouraging scientists to create a pacemaker for the brain.
But because controlling that stimulation presently lacks precision, over-stimulation is a serious concern -- losing some of its therapeutic benefits for the patient over time.
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.
Millions throng to Kurukshetra for holy dip during solar eclipse
By IANS,
Kurukshetra (Haryana) : It was a sea of humanity that arrived in this Haryana town to take a dip in the 'Brahmsarovar' on the occasion of the longest solar eclipse of the 21st century Wednesday.
The administration here said that nearly 1.5 million (15 lakh) were expected to arrive for a holy dip at the 'Brahmsarovar' (Pond of Lord Brahma - the Hindu god considered the creator of the universe) on the occasion.
People started thronging the holy pond since 3 a.m. Wednesday even though the eclipse was expected to take place three hours later.
Get ready to view a total solar eclipse July 22
By IANS,
Mumbai : A rare celestial treat - a total solar eclipse - will be seen in India in the early hours of July 22. And those planning to give it a miss will have to wait for 78 long years to catch the rare glimpse again!
It will be the third total solar eclipse to be visible in India in the past 15 years, a senior scientist said here. The next total solar eclipse will occur in 2087.
Meteor to strike Earth likely disintegrates in sky
By Xinhua
Beijing : U.S. scientists said a meteor expected to strike the Earth likely disintegrated in the sky, media reported Friday.
Some witnesses account a meteor that streaked across the Pacific Northwest skies hit the ground southwest of Ritzville in central Washington, sending local officials on a fruitless hunt for the crater.
Hyderabad lab hopes Iran will help in cloning cheetah
By IANS
Hyderabad : Scientists at a Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species (LaCONE) here are continuing their efforts to clone a rabbit and hope to get assistance from Iran to fulfil their ambitious goal - to clone a cheetah.
This is the country's first animal cloning bid, and the LaCONE scientists, of the prestigious Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB), want to clone a laboratory animal before working on their dream project.
Yahoo’s search migrates to Microsoft
By DPA,
San Francisco : Yahoo has completed the migration of its web and mobile search functions to Microsoft's Bing search engine as the two companies hope that their combined market power may prove a more significant threat to the dominance of Google.
The integration comes more than a year after Yahoo and Microsoft announced their 10-year search deal under which Microsoft will power Yahoo's search site, while Yahoo manages sales for both companies' premium search advertisers.
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".
IBM labs unveil digital transportation solutions
By IANS
Bangalore : The research division of the global IT major IBM has come out with a slew of innovations that have the potential to change the way people travel.
The next-generation transport innovations revolve around driver-assist technologies, intelligent traffic systems using sensor technologies, advanced mass transit systems connected to mobile phones, ultra sophisticated voice recognition systems and smart airport system.
Healing from space for victims of depression
By IANS,
Washington : A futuristic NASA programme to help astronauts cope with space flight blues will also benefit people with similar conditions back home.
"This project has great potential as a self-guided treatment for many people," said NASA project leader James Cartreine, a member of National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) Neurobehavioral and Psychosocial Factors Team.
"Depression is the number one cause of disability days in the US, but it's not only about days lost. Depression also results in presenteeism - showing up for work but not really working," he added.
USIBC hails India’s moon mission as a new frontier of cooperation
By Arun Kumar, IANS,
Washington : The United States India Business Council (USIBC) has hailed the launch of India's maiden moon with two US instruments on board as the beginning of long "relationship promoting the opening of the frontier of outer space."
Russia wants to join Mars mission
By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Russian scientists want to join European Space Agency's ExoMars (Exobiology on Mars) mission to study the Red Planet, a leading Russian space researcher said.
New addition to solar system may be bigger than Jupiter
By IANS,
London : A new planet in our solar system's outer reaches could be four times as large as Jupiter, the biggest planet in the system, scientists believe.
IBM creates world’s smallest 3D map
By IANS,
Washington : IBM scientists have created a 3D map of the earth so small that 1,000 of them could fit on a single grain of salt.
They accomplished this through a new, breakthrough technique that uses a tiny, silicon tip with a sharp apex -- 100,000 times smaller than a sharpened pencil point -- to create patterns and structures as small as 15 nanometre at greatly reduced cost and complexity.
Russian rocket sends US satellite into orbit
By Xinhua,
Moscow : A Russian Proton-M rocket Tuesday sent a US telecommunications satellite, the Inmarsat-4 F3, into Earth orbit, a spokesman for a Moscow-based producer of space launch systems said.
The rocket was launched from the Baikonur space centre in Kazakhstan at 2.43 a.m., said Alexander Bobrenyov, spokesman for the Khrunichev state research and production space centre.
Putin set for Gorshkov deal, n-pact with India
By IANS,
New Delhi: With a pact on Admiral Gorshkov likely during Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's trip to India, Russian envoy Alexander Kadakin Wednesday urged India to look at the reconstruction of the aircraft carrier with "positive eyes" and pitched for setting more nuclear reactors.
The long-delayed pact on the delivery of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, previously marred by pricing disputes, will be among defence deals worth $4 billion that are expected to be finalized during Putin's two-day visit that begins Thursday.
Destruction of wetlands will release massive greenhouse gases
By IANS,
Washington : Destruction of wetlands will release a staggering 771 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere, with devastating consequences.
Meeting in Cuiaba at the edge of South America's Pantanal wetland on Monday, 700 experts from 28 nations at the 8th INTECOL International Wetlands Conference will prescribe measures urgently needed to manage these vibrant ecosystems.
Discovered: a new species of robin
By IANS,
Washington : Smithsonian Institute scientists have discovered a new species of bird in Gabon, Africa, that was unknown to the scientific community.
The newly found olive-backed forest robin was named by scientists for its distinctive olive back and rump. Adult birds measure 4.5 inches in length and average 18 grams in weight.
Males exhibit a fiery orange throat and breast, yellow belly, olive back and black feathers on the head. Females are similar, but less vibrant. Both sexes have a distinctive white dot on their face in front of each eye.
India’s first web portal for the disabled launched
By IANS
New Delhi : Punarbhava.in, India's first interactive web portal for the disabled,was launched here Wednesday, along with a screen reading software that will enable the visually challenged to use computers.
An effort of the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) and Media Lab Asia, a part of the communications and information technology ministry, the web portal and the software are aimed at enabling the disabled to get more connected to the rest of the world.
IRCTCmobile: harnessing mobile technology for railways
By IANS
New Delhi : In a rare example of action pre-empting intention, mobile rail ticketing had already been in use for several months before Railway Minister Lalu Prasad announced it as one of the highlights in his budget to modernize train reservations.
Two NASA instruments to be on India’s moon mission
By IANS
Chennai : When India's first unmanned lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-I takes off in April from the shores of Sriharikota, in Andhra Pradesh, it will carry a payload that includes two critical NASA instruments to map the moon.
The NASA payloads will be a miniature synthetic aperture radar to map ice deposits in the moon's surface and a moon mineralogy mapper to assess its mineral resources.
Defence products major draw at science expo
By IANS
Visakhapatnam : New technologies and products displayed by various defence organisations in the science exposition here have been a major draw for delegates participating in the 95th Indian Science Congress.
Being held as part of the five-day annual event in the sprawling Andhra University campus in this scenic port city, the exhibition, christened Bharat Expo, showcases developments and achievements made by scientific institutions, state-run organisations and private enterprises, using science and technology.
Indian students on solar eclipse ‘odyssey’ to China
By IANS,
New Delhi : A group of 10 students from various schools of the country are among the lucky few chosen to watch the 21st century's longest solar eclipse from Anqing in China, one of the best places in the world to view the spectacle July 22, apart from a village in Bihar.
The students will leave for China Saturday on an eight-day scientific expedition called 'heliodyssey' to watch the eclipse that will last for six minutes and 44 seconds, making it the longest eclipse till 2132.
Indian-origin scientist pioneers ‘green’ steel technology
By Neena Bhandari
Sydney(IANS) : Millions of tonnes of waste plastic will be recycled into steel. The breakthrough Australian 'green' steel technology, which cuts coke and coal demand and reduces emission, has been invented by a Mumbai-born University of New South Wales (UNSW) materials scientist, Veena Sahajwalla.
Sahajwalla, an alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Kanpur, told IANS: "Plastic is simply another form of carbon. In making steel there's essentially no difference between the polyethylene plastic in shopping bags and a natural resource like coal."
Microsoft unveils voice activated Xbox Kinect
By IANS,
London : If you are always searching for your remote or running out of batteries, Kinect is just the thing for you as it allows you to play computer games without the handset.
Twitter storm follows Yakub Memon’s execution
New Delhi : Twitterati took to the micro-blogging site to express their individual views about the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts accused Yakub Memon's...
Kudankulam n-plant a step closer to going on stream
By IANS,
Chennai: The first unit of the protest-hit nuclear power project at Kudankulam is about to be commissioned. Officials have initiated the process to remove its dummy fuel.
Googling also damages the planet: report
By IANS,
London : Performing two Google searches from a desktop computer can generate the same amount of harmful carbon dioxide as boiling an electric kettle for a cup of tea, according to new research quoted Sunday.
A typical search generates about seven grammes of CO2 whereas an electric kettle generates about 15 gm, The Sunday Times quoted a Harvard University physicist as saying.
“A Google search has a definite environmental impact,” says Alex Wissner-Gross, whose research due out soon.
India discovers 67 animal species, 29 plant species
By Prashant K. Nanda, IANS,
New Delhi : Indian scientists have discovered 67 new animal species, including fishes, spiders and crop eating insects, and 29 plant species, including grass and flower varieties, last year.
"All these discoveries were made in 2007 and they are vital additions to the plant and animal science of India and the world," Ramakrishna, director of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), told IANS Thursday.
Space network, a ‘hotline’ from Bangalore to moon
By Fakir Balaji, IANS,
Bangalore : When India's first lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 lifts off from Sriharikota Wednesday, the telemetry, tracking and command network (Istrac) of the space agency in Bangalore will guide the mission on its 18-day voyage to the moon's polar orbit.
Soon after reaching the lunar orbit, the Deep Space Network (DSN) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) at Byalalu, about 40 km from this tech hub, will take charge of the spacecraft and become a 'hotline' between its payloads and space scientists over the next two years.
‘Photonic’ switching system to boost broadband speeds 100-fold
By IANS,
Sydney : Scientists have developed a new 'photonic' switching system that will boost broadband speeds up to a 100-fold.
The photonic integrated circuit (PIC) will ensure almost instantaneous, error-free and unlimited access to the Internet anywhere in the world, according to the Centre for Ultra-high Bandwidth Devices for Optical Systems (CUDOS).
We need clear space vision: Senators to Obama
By DPA,
Washington : A group of senators has called for a clear vision for the future of the US space programme, characterising President Barack Obama's plans for space agency NASA as "without a mission".
Earlier this month, Obama's 2011 budget proposal included the scrapping of existing plans for next-generation spacecraft to return to the moon. The move unleashed a stream of criticism from politicians who supported the plans, but NASA officials defend the move as allowing NASA to focus on longer term goals.
India develops gas turbines for ships
By IANS,
New Delhi : Catapulting India into the elite club of marine gas turbine producers, the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has modified the Kaveri engine, meant for powering the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) enable it propel naval ships.
With this, India joins an exclusive club that includes the US, Russia, Britain and the Ukraine.
Technology Frontiers targets retail chains and malls
By IANS
Chennai : City-based Technology Frontiers (I) Pvt Ltd (TFPL) is targeting growing malls and retail chains for its digital kiosks, said a top official here.
"We have signed deals with Future Group to install our kiosks in their malls," M.S. Muralidharan, managing director of TFPL, told IANS on the sidelines of the press conference after launching a multi-broadcast digital kiosk TOUCHME Tuesday.
Space, atomic energy department chiefs to retire at 66
By IANS
New Delhi : The union cabinet Thursday gave the go-ahead for a four-year extension in service to the chairman of the Space Commission, the Atomic Energy Commission, and the secretary, Department of Space and Atomic Energy, from the present age of 62 to 66.
The cabinet would make the necessary amendment soon, Information and Broadcasting Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi told reporters.
India to log 236 mn mobile internet users by 2016: Report
New Delhi: India is projected to have 236 million mobile internet users by 2016, with the figure reaching 314 million by 2017, a report...
Airborne lasers sharpen mapping of streams, rivers 10-fold
By IANS,
Washington : Lasers beamed from airplanes are greatly sharpening images of streams and rivers and interpreting how well water bodies can help maintain or expand fish stocks, according to a new study.
"It's kind of like going from your backyard telescope to the Hubble telescope," says Boston College Geologist Noah P. Snyder. "Restoring fish habitat is just one example. For the fisherman, backpacker, forester, land-use planner or developer - anyone who uses map data - this new technology is the next revolution in mapping."
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.
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.
US executive mission to sell green technologies to India
By Arun Kumar, IANS,
Washington : Executives from leading US clean energy and environmental companies will visit India next month to identify commercial opportunities for clean and green US technologies in India.
The role of the upcoming mission and how the private sector can help India develop and deploy low-carbon technologies to combat climate change was discussed at a meeting with Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh.
US explorer traces asteroid near Tadpole Nebula
By IANS,
Los Angeles : NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) has sent images of an asteroid marching across Tadpole Nebula.
As WISE scanned the sky on a recent mission, it caught the asteroid passing by in our solar system, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) said Thursday.
The asteroid, 1719 Jens, left tracks across the image, seen as a line of yellow-green dots around the Tadpole Nebula, a star-forming region at 12,000 light years from the earth, Xinhua reported.
Researchers find ways of making laser more efficient
By IANS,
Washington : A Princeton-led team of researchers has discovered an entirely new mechanism for making common electronic materials emit laser beams.
The finding could lead to lasers that operate more efficiently and at higher temperatures than existing devices, and find applications in environmental monitoring, homeland security, medical diagnostics and other areas that require extremely sensitive detection of different chemicals.
Precursors of miniaturised machines developed
By IANS
London : The precursors of miniaturised machines are here. Packed with instrumentation, these marble sized probes float freely under water, measure local temperatures to a millionth of a degree, and send the data back wirelessly.
Developed by researchers at the Université de Lyon in France, these mini machines will be released in large numbers to collect data on ocean currents and atmospheric winds, sciencedaily.com reported.
No sex for 100 million years – micro organisms baffle scientists
By DPA
Hamburg : Asexual micro organisms continue to display an amazingly diverse ability to adapt to their ever-changing environment as they have over the past 100 million years, according to scientists who are baffled by these creatures' non-sexual evolutionary change.
New research by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Botanical Physiology in Potsdam, Germany, say they have discovered startling new evidence of adaptation to external environmental stimuli by asexual micro organisms.
World’s first pre-quake alert system set up in Japan
By DPA
Tokyo : The Japan Meteorological Agency Monday began operating the world's first system to give pre-earthquake warnings to the public.
The system is designed to detect earthquakes by sensing small seismic waves that precede big quakes and give warnings a few seconds before a major quake hits to regions expected to suffer damage.
Warnings would be aired through a public television station, NHK, and private stations as well as radio stations, the agency said.
The service is only available in Japan.
Pakistan to introduce biometric machines to detect fake passports
Islamabad : Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has decided to introduce machines at the Islamabad airport to detect fake passports, a media report said...
IBM to set system to monitor Bangalore water supply
By IANS,
Bangalore: Global IT major IBM's big data and predictive analytics will create systems to monitor and manage water supply in Bangalore by the...
Chandrayaan may explain origins of Moon: British scientist
By IANS,
London : A British scientist who helped design a camera on board India's Chandrayaan-1 says he hopes images from it will help answer two tantalising questions about the Moon.
“Where did the Moon come from? And could it ever sustain human life?” Maneul Grande of Aberystwyth Universtiy told the Times newspaper.
“After the Apollo landings, people thought they knew a fair bit about the Moon - they'd seen people walking around up there,” said Grande, who helped to design the European Space Agency's camera that will take X-ray images of the Moon's surface.
Gmail allows phone calls from computers
By IANS,
New York : Google Inc. Wednesday said its Gmail service will add a feature that allows users to call any phone directly from their computers.
"Starting today, you can call any phone right from Gmail," Robin Schriebman, a software engineer at Google, wrote on the company's blog.
"We've been testing this feature internally and have found it to be useful in a lot of situations, ranging from making a quick call to a restaurant, to placing a call when you're in an area with bad reception," Schriebman wrote.
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.
Weblin users peer over their shoulders at internet
By DPA
Hamburg : A page at eBay looks like a shop window on a high street with some pretty strange people outside when web users have a free program called Weblin installed.
There's an astronaut bobbing in apparent zero gravity and an alien with four arms scratching his head. A polar bear can say, in a speech bubble, "Where are you from?"
These tiny screen figures represent flesh-and-blood human beings.
Weblin is intended for web surfers who want to make themselves perceptible through an avatar, a kind of visual alter ego, during their internet explorations.
Kepler telescope finds new planetary system
By DPA,
Washington : The planet-hunting Kepler space telescope has found a new planetary system orbiting a distant star that could include a planet nearly the same size as Earth, NASA scientists said Thursday.
In findings to be published in the journal Science this week, the scientists report the discovery of two large planets about the size of Saturn orbiting a star similar to the sun. A third small object orbiting the star could be a much smaller planet, just a bit larger than Earth, but more work must be done to confirm it is actually a planet.
Outpacing India, Pakistan may get 3rd largest nuclear arsenal: Report
By Arun Kumar
Washington : Far outpacing India in the development of nuclear warheads, Pakistan could have at least 350 nuclear weapons within a...
‘Nuclear-capable Agni-V to be tested soon’
By IANS,
Chandigarh: India's ambitious 5,000-km range Agni-V nuclear-capable missile will be launched soon, a senior scientist said here Sunday.
E. coli bacterium model of super industrial efficiency
By IANS,
Washington : E. coli bacterium, one of the best-studied single-celled organisms around, is a master of industrial efficiency. This bacterium can be thought of as a factory with just one product - itself.
It exists to make copies of itself and its business plan is to make them at the lowest possible cost, with the greatest possible efficiency. Efficiency, in the case of a bacterium, can be defined by the energy and resources it uses to maintain its plant and produce new cells versus the time it expends on the task.
Nine win funding for rural innovation projects
By IANS
Chennai : The Rural Innovation Fund (RIF), promoted by Microsoft India among others, has selected nine innovators, who will receive $15,000 (Rs.590,000) each to implement their projects to empower rural India.
Microsoft India has established a RIF corpus of $200,000 to encourage innovations that will benefit rural India.
Indian rocket puts in orbit 10 satellites at one go
By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : India's space programme made history Monday with the successful launch of a Rs.700 million ($17.4 million) rocket that placed in orbit 10 satellites - two Indian and eight foreign.
At precisely 9.23 a.m., the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)-C9 rose into the sky, emitting thick orange flame, and placed in orbit an Indian cartography and a mini satellite to maintain leadership in the remote sensing domain. It also slung eight nano satellites into outer space - marking the world's second largest such mission.
India is wasting its time chasing BlackBerry
By Prasanto K. Roy, IANS,
You're a Delhi-based wannabe terrorist needing to communicate with your handlers. What do you do? Invisible-ink notes are passe, as are carrier pigeons. You will, of course, use electronic options.
Like e-mail. Walk into a cyber cafe, log into a G-mail or Yahoo account. Don't use an account in your own name. And don't send e-mail. Simply read instructions left for you in an unsent mail, saved as a draft in your account. Then, to reply, just edit the unsent e-mail, and save it back as a draft. If e-mail isn't travelling, it can't be intercepted.
Martian orbit on Indian spacecraft’s radar Wednesday
Bangalore : India's tryst with Mars begins early Wednesday when its inter-planetary spacecraft readies to enter the Martian orbit in a maiden attempt to...
‘Wireless’ humans could backbone new mobile networks
By IANS,
London : People could form the backbone of powerful new mobile internet networks by carrying wearable sensors.
Emerging technologies meet to be held in Bangalore
By IANS,
Bangalore : A two-day meet on innovations and research developments in the Internet, data-centre networking, wireless, social networking, and enabling technologies such as silicon design and manufacturing begins here Thursday.
Called 'The Stanford Engineering Symposium - India', the meet is being organised by the Stanford University's School of Engineering for the first time in the country in association with SiliconIndia, a professional networking portal.
Dubai unveils new website for business community
By IANS,
Dubai: Dubai has unveiled a new advanced and user-friendly website for the emirate's business community to improve public access to business-related information and procedures, the WAM news agency has reported.
The new website, developed by the Department of Economic Development (DED), is the first of many steps planned for the near future to improve the business community's interaction with the department, officials said.
Russia doubts defunct US satellite may have nuclear material
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russia is suspecting the US spy satellite that has gone out of control may have nuclear material onboard and is closely monitoring its movement in orbit, a top defence ministry official has said.
"Russian military experts suggest the satellite could have an onboard nuclear power source," said Igor Barinov, first deputy chairperson of the State Duma (parliament) defence committee.
Google Street View also copied people’s emails, passwords
By IANS,
London : In a major privacy breach, internet search giant Google copied computer passwords and entire emails from households across Britain.
Europe’s Columbus docks at space station, finally
By DPA
Washington : After four years' delay and last minute space-walk hitches, the Columbus laboratory docked onto the International Space Station, opening a new chapter for Europe in space flight.
"Columbus is now officially a part of the ISS," NASA officials said Monday on the NASA TV transmission of the docking.
In a precision transfer that took about two hours, a robotic arm operated from inside the space station manoeuvred Columbus out of the cargo bay on the Atlantis shuttle and into its permanent place at the Harmony portal that was installed last year.
Rocket scientist heads ISRO liquid propulsion systems centre
By IANS,
Bangalore : Noted rocket scientist S. Ramakrishnan is the new director of the Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) liquid propulsion systems centre at Thiruvananthapuram.
The space agency Wednesday said Ramakrishnan, as director of projects at its Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre at Thiruvananthapuram earlier, had played a key role in the development of polar satellite launch vehicle (PSLV) and its liquid propulsion stages.
Is it time to upgrade your wireless network?
Washington, Oct 10 (DPA) If you go shopping today for any type of wireless computing device, ask yourself these questions:
Q: Do I have to purchase draft 802.11n products from the same company?
A: You probably know that to get faster wireless Internet and network access, all of the devices within your wireless network should be capable of operating at the same speed. That means that your router, notebook cards, and any PCI desktop wireless cards should be draft 802.11n.
Genetic materials of starry origin: study
By IANS,
London : In a first, scientists have confirmed that an important component of early genetic material is extraterrestrial in origin.
In a paper in the latest issue of the journal Planetary Science Letters,they have said that some of the raw materials that went into early genetic material have been found in meteorite fragments.
The materials include the molecules uracil and xanthine, precursors to the molecules that make up DNA and RNA, known as nucleobases.
Indian space agency to map the moon
By Venkatachari Jagannathan and Fakir Balaji, IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : The Indian space agency will map the entire surface of the moon in two years, a top official said here Wednesday, hours after the launch of the country's first unmanned mission to the moon.
"The Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft carries 11 instruments that would conduct varied tests about the moon," G. Madhavan Nair, chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), told reporters here.
Chandrayaan-1, with a life expectancy of two years, is scheduled to orbit the moon from Nov 8 onwards.
India second-largest wireless market in the world: study
By Frederick Noronha, IANS,
Bangalore : Mobile telephony has grown rapidly in India, especially during the last three years, with India becoming the second-largest wireless market in the world, says a World Bank study.
The number of wireless subscribers in the country has reached 250 million, making India the second-largest wireless market in the world, says the study, The Role of Mobile Phones in Sustainable Rural Poverty Reduction.
Promising carbon material can act as power reservoir
By IANS,
Washington : A breakthrough in use of 'grahpene', a single-atom thick, carbon-based material, will make massive storage of wind power and solar energies possible.
Texan University researchers believe the breakthrough could double the capacity of existing ultracapacitors (which store electric energy) made out of a different form of carbon.
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.
New iguana species found in Fiji
By IANS,
Sydney : A new species of iguana, found by Australian and US researchers in central Fiji, takes the number of such existing Pacific species to three.
Scientists named the new iguana species Brachylophus bulabula. Bulabula is a doubling of bula, the Fijian word for 'hello,' thus signifying an even more enthusiastic greeting.
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.
Pune gears up for two-day international robotic competition
By IANS,
Mumbai/Pune : Pune gears up to see robots co-ordinate as a team as they form a pyramid to enact a high-tech 'dahi handi' (taking butter from a pot hanging high above) sequence at the two-day 7th ABU International Robocon Competition Saturday.
The event is the culmination of a yearlong competition among teams from over two dozen colleges spread across 17 countries of the Asia-Pacific region.
Nirma Institute of Technology, Ahmedabad and Maharashtra Institute of Technology, (MIT) Pune are representing India at the event.
Scientists writing foolproof computer security code
By IANS,
Washington : We often see websites asking us to key in wavy letters into a box to prevent computer robots from hacking into servers and databases. But these codes, which are becoming increasingly complex for an average person, are not immune to security breaches.
A project led by Danny Cohen-Or, computer science professor at the Tel Aviv University (TAU), shows how a new kind of video captcha code may be harder to outsmart. Captcha technology is intended to block spam e-mail and automated systems.
Spiderman, squid inspire innovative ways of stopping runaway drivers
By IANS,
Washington : Celluloid superhero Spiderman and the giant squid are inspiring scientists to think of innovative ways to stop erring drivers in their tracks.
Runaway drivers are a common problem for law enforcement. They just won't stop unless 'persuaded' by bullets, barriers, spikes, or snares, all of them a risky business indeed.
Shooting up a fugitive's car may be a possibility - but what if children or hostages are in it? Lay down barriers, and the driver might swerve into a school bus. Spike his tires, and he might fishtail into a van - if the spikes stop him at all.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, software makes fairest of all
By IANS,
London : "Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fairest one of all," asks the wicked stepmother in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The magic mirror did not lie, but now Tel Aviv University (TAU) researchers have developed a software that can make plain looks seem as good as that of a queen.
While its output is currently limited to digitised images, the software may be able to guide plastic surgeons, aid magazine cover editors, and even become a feature incorporated into all digital cameras.
Teenage suicides: Study advocates greater family support
By IANS,
London : Rising teen suicides have prompted demands for improved prevention strategies, in which the family physician or the general practitioner is expected to play a pivotal part.
Researchers from Umeå University have identified the phenomenon of cluster suicides where one suicide appears to trigger similar acts among other teenagers in a community.
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.
Google threatens to leave China over ‘phishing”
By IANS,
Los Angeles : Google has threatened to close its operations and offices in China after hacking of email accounts of many human rights activists.
In a statement on its blog Tuesday, the world's second biggest corporate said it has detected in December "a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property from Google.''
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.
Asteroid 2012 DA14 passes by Earth
By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : The massive 2012 DA14 asteroid came closest to the Earth late Friday and is now heading away from the planet, Russian astronomers said.
Microsoft releases first Vista service pack
By DPA
San Francisco : Microsoft released its first major update to its Windows Vista operating system Wednesday, prompting a flood of complaints from users who said the service pack fouled up their computers.
Microsoft made the free update available via its Windows Update website and said the software improved the stability, security and performance of the Vista. However it also warned that the service pack could clash with some security software and other programs customers may have installed on their machine.
Large Hadron Collider performing well
By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow : A detailed check of the world's most powerful atom smasher -- the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) -- has shown that it is "performing well," the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, known as CERN, has said on its website.
The atom smasher, running at a low energy, was restarted last Saturday. The first protons were injected into the LHC following a pre-New Year technical shutdown and travelled in both directions successfully.
US, Russian satellites collide in space
By Xinhua,
Washington : A privately owned US communication satellite collided with a defunct Russian satellite in orbit posing a risk to the international space station, which a NASA official said was the first such incident in space.
It was the first such collision in space, NASA spokesman Kelly Humphries said Wednesday, adding that the magnitude of the accident was still unknown.
Virtual crash dummy to make driving much safer
By IANS,
Washington : Automakers have been crashing test dummies to gain insight into how safety systems protect or fail to protect people during car accidents.
But these dummies made out of plastic and steel, not tissue and bone, have their limitations. Now a virtual dummy being developed by two engineering teams with University of Virginia (UVa) Centre for Biomechanics, will make driving much safer.
Astronomers identify second-brightest star in Milky Way
By Xinhua,
Washington : A contender for the title of the brightest star in our Milky Way has been unearthed in the dusty metropolis of the galaxy's center, according to a new study in an upcoming issue of the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.
Nicknamed the "Peony nebula star," the bright stellar bulb was revealed by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and other ground-based telescopes. It blazes with the light of an estimated 3.2 million suns, reported a team of German astronomers.
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.
Healing of ozone hole could aggravate global warming
By IANS,
London : The hole in the ozone layer is now steadily closing, but chances are that it could aggravate warming in the southern hemisphere, warns a new study.
The Antarctic ozone hole was once regarded as one of the biggest environmental threats, but the discovery of a previously undiscovered feedback shows that it has instead helped to shield this region from carbon-induced warming over two decades.
High-speed winds in the area beneath the hole have led to the formation of brighter summertime clouds, which reflect more of the sun's powerful rays.
South Korea develops core technology for stealth fighter
By IANS,
Seoul : South Korea has developed the core technology for radar-evading stealth fighters and is preparing for a test flight of a fighter equipped with the technology, WAM news agency reported Monday.
It has been nine years since the Agency for Defence Development (ADD) and other South Korean defence research institutes began developing stealth fighter technology in 1999, the report quoted Yonhap News as saying.
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.
Pentagon developing stealthy sensors for bat-inspired spy plane
By IANS
Washington : A tiny six-inch spy plane modelled on a bat would gather data from sights, sounds and smells in urban combat zones and transmit information back to soldiers in real time.
University of Michigan (U-M) Centre for Objective Microelectronics and Bio-mimetic Advanced Technology (COM-BAT) will develop sensors, communication tools and batteries for the US Army for this micro-aerial vehicle that's been dubbed "the bat".
Sulphur dioxide level drops in Delhi
By IANS,
New Delhi : The level of sulphur dioxide (SO2), a major pollutant, has decreased in the national capital, data released by the environment ministry revealed Friday.
While the sulphur dioxide levels are within the norms, the nitrogen oxide (NO) and particulate matter 10 (PM10) levels exceed the prescribed norms.
"Decreasing trend of sulphur dioxide may be due to various interventions that have taken place in recent years such as reduction of sulphur in diesel and the use of cleaner fuel such as CNG," a ministry official said.
Microsoft set to unveil Internet Explorer 8
By IANS,
Redmond : After two beta tests and a soft release, Microsoft Corp is all set to officially launch its latest internet browser Thursday night.
The company will launch Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) at 9:30 p.m. Indian time, an official statement said.
Microsoft, whose share in the browser market took a beating with the emergence of rivals like Mozilla's Firefox, Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari, is aiming to regain its lost ground with the new browser.
Microsoft's market share dropped to about 67 percent last month as compared to over 90 percent three years ago.
Five more exoplanets found in Milky Way
By DPA,
Washington : NASA scientists said Monday they have identified another five planets orbiting stars in the Milky Way Galaxy.
But none of them appears to be the long sought after Earth-twin that could support life the way the home planet does, Kepler telescope specialists said at a news conference in Washington.
Nanofibres make clothes that cannot get wet
By DPA,
Geneva : Polyester fibres covered by tiny silicone filaments can create clothing that when dunked in water will still remain completely dry, a Swiss scientist discovered.
The nanotechnology structure allows the surface to be covered in chemicals which make the clothing hydrophobic to the point that water simply bounces or slides off.
Stefan Seeger, a lead researcher on the project at the University of Zurich, said the technology could have many purposes, including producing improved swimsuits, making industrial clothing and even for protecting outdoor furniture.
Copenhagen aims to be first carbon neutral capital
By IANS,
Copenhagen : The capital of Denmark has set itself the ambitious target of becoming the world's first carbon-neutral capital by 2025 by bringing its net carbon dioxide emissions down to zero.
The target was announced by the seven mayors of Copenhagen here Tuesday, while they launched the city's new climate plan. The plan has 50 specific initiatives to achieve the city's target of a 20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide emissions by 2015.
Mars message mocks many
By IANS,
Ahmedabad : It was an e-mail message that promised a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gaze Tuesday night at the unique celestial event of Mars coming closest to Earth in 5,000 years. But, it turned out to be a hoax.
The e-mail message read: "Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting Aug 27 when Mars comes within 34.65 million miles off Earth."
Making IT play knight in shining armour
By IANS
New Delhi : Can the computer enter the home and the street in a way that helps minimise violence against women? An initiative from Sri Lanka believes that information and communication technology (ICT) can do just that.
The Information and Communication Technology Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) has awarded a grant to the Centre for Women and Development for a project to use technology to document violence against women in the north of the country via a database.
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.
10-fold increase needed in network to track carbon emissions
BY IANS,
Washington : Monitoring greenhouse gas levels will require a global data collection network 10 times larger than the current set-up, according to a study.
Scientists propose increasing the number of measurement sites from 100 to 1,000, which would decrease the uncertainty in computer models and help scientists better quantify changes.
The study's authors, Melinda Marquis and Pieter Tans, said the need for improved monitoring was imperative in view of atmospheric carbon concentrations now at 385 parts per million, ScienceDaily reported.
Bio-monitoring to track pollutants, trace elements
By IANS,
London : Bio-monitoring can be used in environments where a technological approach to monitoring pollutants, particulates and trace elements is not only difficult and costly but may be impossible, say scientists.
"It allows continuous observation of an area with the help of bio-indicators, an organism that reveals the presence of a substance in its surroundings with observable and measurable changes, such as accumulation of pollutants, which can be distinguished from the effects of natural stress," said Borut Smodis of the Jozef Stefan Institute in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Overcast sky may spoil chances of watching solar eclipse
By IANS,
New Delhi : An overcast sky may spoil the excitement of watching Friday's solar eclipse in the national capital since the weatherman has forecast rain and thundershowers.
“The weather overall seems bad and going by the meteorological department's forecast for Delhi, the chances of watching the solar eclipse are low,” N. Rathnashree, Nehru Planetarium director, told IANS.
In New Delhi, the eclipse begins at 4.03 p.m. and ends at 5.56 p.m. The eclipse peaks at 5:02 p.m., when about 62.4 percent of the sun's diameter is eclipsed.
Duck-billed dinosaurs outgrew predators to survive
By IANS,
Washington : The duck-billed hadrosaur with long limbs and a soft body had virtually no protection against predators like tyrannosaurs. But the latest research on the plant-eating dinosaur suggests that it grew into adulthood much faster than its predators, giving it superiority in size.
Scientists compared growth rate data from the hadrosaur, Hypacrosaurus, to three predators: the tyrannosaur Albertosaurus and its gigantic relative Tyrannosaurus rex, as well as the small Velociraptor-like Troodon.
Earth’s birth: Inert gases provide clues
By IANS,
Sydney : Inert gases trapped inside Earth's interior provide clues into the processes responsible for its birth and the evolution of oceans and atmosphere, a new study says.
Scattering light causes blazing colours of sunsets
By IANS
New York : Ever wonder why the sky turns a deep and blazing red or orange at sunset? It's thanks to a phenomenon called scattering, explains a new study.
Scattering happens when light collides against molecules in the atmosphere, causing it to scatter.
The study, by researchers at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, shows how scattering determines the colours you see in the sky at sunset or sunrise.
According to Steven Ackerman, who led the study, the colour blue, being of shorter wavelength, is scattered more than other colours by the molecules.
Apple unveils MacBook Air – thinnest, lightest laptop
By IANS,
London : Apple has unveiled the thinnest, lightest laptop ever which combines features from the iPhone and iPad with traditional series of MacBook.
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Iran tests sounding rocket, unveils first homemade satellite
By RIA Novosti
Tehran/Moscow : Iran successfully launched on Monday a sounding rocket as a preliminary step toward sending its first homemade research satellite into orbit, national media said.
Iran's state television earlier reported that Iranian scientists had built the Omid (Hope) research satellite under a project that took 10 years to complete. The satellite was unveiled on Monday during an official ceremony and may be launched by March 2009.
Spanish company invents a way to walk on water
By RIA Novosti
Madrid : Two thousand years after a certain carpenter from Galilea pulled it off, a Spanish company has developed a somewhat less miraculous, if still impressive, way to walk on water.
As described in the web news journal Diariodeibiza, the company Vehiculos con Ingenio or Transportation with Imagination began selling its new contraption a month ago that allows people using it literally to walk on water.
Smart clothes to power portable electronic devices
By IANS,
Washington: Engineers have created energy-scavenging nanofibres that could one day be woven into clothing and textiles.
The nanofibres can convert energy from mechanical stresses into electricity, and could one day be used to create clothing that can power small electronics, says a new study, conducted by University of California, Berkeley (UCB) researchers.
Endeavour docks with ISS
By RIA Novosti
Washington : The U.S. space shuttle Endeavour has docked with the International Space Station, NASA's mission control center in Houston said.
The shuttle has delivered the first part of the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's (JAXA) huge Kibo space laboratory, as well as Dextre, a Canadian-built robotic system.
During their 16-day voyage, crew members will carry out a total of five spacewalks. The first spacewalk will be made by U.S. astronauts Rick Linneham and Garrett Reisman.
Gates Expects Microsoft to Launch New Windows in Next Year
By SPA
Washington : Microsoft Corporation co-founder Bill Gates said Friday he expects the new version of Windows operating software, currently called Windows 7, to be released “sometime in the next year or so.”
Microsoft has said it expects to release a new version of Windows about three years after the introduction of Vista in early 2007. A company spokeswoman said Gates’ comments are in line with a development cycle that usually releases a test version of the software before its official introduction.
IBS Software wins ‘IT systems provider’ award
By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : IBS Software, IT systems provider to travel, transportation and logistics industries, Tuesday said it had won the 'IT Systems Provider of the Year' award at the Air Cargo India 2010 event in Mumbai.
"This award is a recognition of our success in introducing a new paradigm in IT solutions for business problems that plague the industry," Senior Vice President and Global Head of Cargo Line of Business for IBS Akshay Shrivastava said in a statement here.