Online petitions website launched in Russia
By IANS/RIA Novosti,
Moscow: An online portal to promote public petitions has been launched by the Foundation for Information Democracy in Russia.
Evolution pace differentiates climate on Venus, earth
By IANS
London : Venus, considered earth's 'prodigal twin', has a climate that is vastly different. And experts say it is because of the pace of evolution on the two planets.
According to Fred Taylor of Oxford University, Venus evolved very rapidly compared to the earth in the initial years - a crucial difference.
The new information is being beamed to us from the European Venus Express spacecraft now orbiting Venus.
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.
Spacecraft images show rings of Saturn’s 2nd largest moon
By Xinhua
Los Algeles : Saturn's second largest moon, Rhea, may have rings, according to images from a spacecraft managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Los Angeles.
The finding was described in a study published in the March 7 issue of the journal Science.
Scientists at NASA believe the rings may be the remnants of an asteroid or comet collision, which circulated large quantities of gas and solid particles around Rhea.
Parrot fossil found in Scandinavia
By IANS,
Washington : The discovery of a parrot fossil in Scandinavia dating back some 55 million years, indicates that they were once common in colder climes like Norway and Denmark.
Parrots today live only in the tropics and the southern hemisphere, but this new research suggests that they first evolved in the north, much earlier than had been suspected.
India close to having its own satellite navigation system
By Venkatachari Jagannathan,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : India successfully put its fourth navigation satellite into orbit in copy book style on Saturday, bringing the country...
Watch out for Uranus at its brightest Saturday night
By IANS,
New Delhi : Keep your telescopes handy for a wonderful celestial activity - Uranus will shine at its brightest when it aligns directly with the Sun and the Earth Saturday.
At this time of the year, Uranus comes closest to the Earth. Saturday the planet will be visible through telescopes right from dusk to dawn.
"It is an interesting phenomenon as Uranus and the Earth would be in a straight line. Both the planets come closest at this time of the year and Uranus, in turn, shines at its brightest," said Nehru Planetarium director N. Ratnashree.
Carbon levels may trigger disastrous climate change
By IANS,
Washington : Carbon levels have reached a point of no return and may trigger disastrous climate change -- unless they are reversed, scientists have warned.
Their study is a departure from recent estimates that truly dangerous levels would be reached only later in this century.
"There is a bright side to this conclusion," says James E. Hansen, the study's co-author and director of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, part of Columbia University's Earth Institute.
Extreme weather can trigger epidemics, says study
By IANS,
Sydney : Climatic extremes like frequent droughts and floods, associated with global warming, can trigger epidemics that could potentially wipe out livestock or wildlife.
A new study suggests that such extremes are capable of altering normal host-pathogen relationships, causing a “perfect storm” of multiple infectious outbreaks.
Ensuring everyday privacy while using the computer
By DPA
Washington : Most of the privacy threats we hear about are from anonymous "hackers" or unnamed forces waiting to swoop via an Internet connection and steal our data or personal information. But many people have privacy concerns that are closer to home.
While the outside threats do exist, it's probably far more likely that a friend, guest, colleague, or family member will see information on your computer that you had not intended to share.
How can you tighten security at home or the office? Read on for some answers.
Facebook hits one billion mark!
By IANS,
London : Popular social networking site Facebook has broken the record for one billion active users, according to its founder Mark Zuckerberg.
Nanotechnology: science of small with huge opportunities
Chennai, March 24 (IANS) In future we may never have to wash our shirts, thanks to nanotechnology, and we may have nano-shoes that can absorb the shock of an exploding nuclear device.
A. Sivathanu Pillai, one of India's top scientists, discussed all this and many more far-reaching possibilities of nanotechnology, which basically means engineering of systems at molecular level, at an industry meet here last week.
"It is material science at its best," said Pillai, who is chief controller (research and development) at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).
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.
Move over Orkut, here comes India’s BigAdda
By Azera Rahman, IANS
New Delhi : Check the scribbles in your phone scrapbook, send friend requests on the wireless, have discussions in as many as eight different languages...all on India's social networking site, BigAdda, which could give Orkut and Facebook a run for its money.
With an estimated 1.24 million users so far, this five-month old networking site is fast catching up among Indian youth, especially in tier 2 cities like Guwahati, Nashik, Surat, Tuticorin, Bhilai and Amritsar.
ISRO to launch moon mission in October-December
By IANS,
Kolkata : The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) plans to launch its first unmanned moon mission, Chandrayan-I, between October and December, a top official said here Thursday.
"We are hopeful of launching the spacecraft in the third quarter of 2008-09. The mission would be targeted to capture images of the lunar surface," ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair told reporters during an interactive session here.
Shuttle Atlantis closes in on international space station
By SPA
Houston : Atlantis maneuvered toward a rendezvous with the international space station on Saturday, bringing a new US$2 billion (¤1.4 billion) lab that European scientists can't wait to see installed, reported ap.
The shuttle had been on a two-day, high-speed chase to catch up with the station.
The meeting will give NASA engineers another chance to search for launch damage to the shuttle's thermal shielding, the problem that doomed Columbia in 2003.
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.
Japan’s space lab set, Canada’s new robot next
By SPA
Houston : Spacewalking astronauts will work on assembling a Canadian robotic system on Saturday following the successful installation of the first segment of Japan's lab on the International Space Station.
According to Reuters, Saturday's spacewalk will be the second of five planned during space shuttle Endeavour's busy 16-day mission in space.
The plans had been in doubt until late on Friday when power was restored to the robotic system.
But Friday was Japan's moment of space glory.
BMW developing cars that ‘sense’ danger to pedestrians
By DPA,
Munich : BMW is refining a car-to-car communication system that offers more pedestrian protection by "sensing" situations and persons that cannot normally be seen by motorists, according to the car maker.
In a typical situation a child could suddenly jump onto the road from between two parked vehicles. In such a case the moving vehicle would communicate with an electronic transponder carried by the child or cyclist for protection.
US shuttle Atlantis leaves space station for home
By Xinhua
Washington : The US space shuttle Atlantis undocked from the International Space Station Monday morning, heading home after delivering a new European lab, according to NASA TV live broadcasting.
"We just wanted to thank you again for being a great host and letting us enjoy your station for about a week," Atlantis' Commander Stephen Frick told ISS commander Peggy Whitson.
"It's a great new room (Columbus laboratory) you have added on and we really appreciate it," Whitson replied.
Indian space launches in the past
By IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : The Chandrayaan moon mission will be the 27th by the Indian Space Research Organisation. The earlier 26:
Vehicle Launch Date Result
1. SLV-3 E1 Aug 10, 1979 Unsuccessful
2. SLV-3 E2 Jul 18, 1980 Successful
3. SLV-3 D1 May 31, 1981 Successful
4. SLV-3 D2 Apr 17, 1983 Successful
5. ASLV-D1 Mar 24, 1987 Unsuccessful
6. ASLV-D2 Jul 13, 1988 Unsuccessful
7. ASLV-D3 May 20, 1992 Successful
8. ASLV-D4 May 4, 1994 Successful
9. PSLV-D1 Sep 20, 1993 Unsuccessful
10. PSLV-D2 Oct 15, 1994 Successful
11. PSLV-D3 Mar 21, 1996 Successful
‘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).
Microsoft’s Kinect sets record as fastest-selling tech gadget
By DPA,
San Francisco : Microsoft's Kinect has been named the fastest-selling tech gadget of all time after racking up sales of 10 million units since its launch in November.
Mercury is latest and deadlier threat to environment
By IANS,
Washington : As if global warming was not alarming in itself, add one more sinister threat to the list -- mercury pollution.
It has already spurred public health officials to advise eating less fish, but it could become a more pressing concern in a warmer world.
Sue Natali, postdoctoral associate in botany at the University of Florida in a paper she co-authored compared mercury levels in soils under trees growing in air enriched with carbon dioxide to soil beneath trees in ambient air.
Oldest evidence of leprosy traced to India
By IANS,
Washington : A child's 4,000-year-old skeleton that surfaced in India's Rajasthan state could be the oldest evidence of leprosy, says a new study.
The analysis was conducted by biological anthropologist Gwen Robbins from Appalachian State University working with an undergraduate, an evolutionary biologist from University of North Carolina at Greensboro and archaeologists from the Pune-based Deccan College in India.
Life-changing innovations vie for top global tech honour
By Jaideep Sarin, IANS,
Helsinki (Finland) : Few would know that it is an algorithm that helps us use the mobile phone technology that has made our lives simpler. Or that an optic fibre cable that couldn't send a communication one metre across is now a basis for the global information super highway of over 10,000 km.
These are just two of the four top innovations developed by six scientists and inventors in the last few years, which are in the fray for this year's Millennium Technology Prize - the highest prize in the world of technology and considered Nobel Prize in this area.
Chandrayaan-I enters lunar orbit
By IANS,
Bangalore : India's first unmanned moon mission Chandrayaan-I was Saturday put into lunar orbit at around 5.15 p.m., scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said here.
The spacecraft was successfully put into an elliptical orbit after complex manoeuvres.
"The liquid apogee motor on board the spacecraft was fired for about 805 seconds to put Chandrayaan-1 into an elliptical orbit with 7,500 km aposelene (farthest from moon) and 500 km pericelene (nearest to moon)," ISRO director S. Satish told IANS.
Shuttle Discovery flight hits halfway mark
By SPA,
Cape Canaveral, Florida : As their flight hit the halfway mark, shuttle Discovery's astronauts faced more work with the space station's new science lab on Saturday.
All 10 occupants of the linked shuttle and station chipped in Friday to get Japan's billion-dollar Kibo lab up and running, and to expand its size by attaching an attic to it.
On Saturday _ one week into their mission _ the astronauts planned to test drive the lab's 33-foot (10-meter) robot arm, the Associated Press reported.
Young engineers launch device to save power
By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : Seven engineers, all in their mid-20s, have developed a new device that they claim will save power losses from computers and gadgets running on electricity.
"The product, 'Spara', is ready and will be launched when our office at the Technopark's Technology Business Incubation opens Wednesday," said Nelvin Joseph, CEO of Artin Dynamics, the start-up firm floated by the seven engineer-entrepreneurs.
Addressing reporters here Tuesday night, Joseph said his company dealt with artificial intelligence and will develop products and services with this in mind.
Russian spaceship delivers food, water to International Space Station
By Xinhua,
Moscow : A Russian cargo spaceship has docked with the International Space Station (ISS) to deliver food, water, fuel and equipment for the crew, the Mission Control said Saturday.
The Progress M-14 spaceship docked with the station at 1.39 a.m. Moscow time Saturday.
The spaceship delivered some 2.5 tons of cargo as well as gifts from the crews' families to Russian cosmonauts Sergei Volkov and Oleg Kononenko and NASA astronaut Garrett E. Reisman.
Meteorite that killed dinosaurs was six km wide: study
By IANS
Washington : The meteorite linked to the mass extinction of dinosaurs and other life forms 65 million years ago was four to six kilometres in diameter.
That's the conclusion of a team of Hawaii University researchers who have evolved a mechanism to measure the size of meteorites that have rammed into earth over millennia.
François Paquay and his team used isotopes of the rare element osmium in sediments at the bottom of the ocean to estimate the meteorite sizes and also the frequency with which they hit earth.
UAE’s first remote sensing satellite ready for launch
By IANS,
Dubai : The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) first remote sensing and earth observation satellite is ready for launch later this year.
The Emirates Institute for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST), in a statement issued here, said DubaiSat 1 was now awaiting its launch later this year onboard a Russian rocket through the Moscow-based International Space Company (ISC) Kosmotras.
UAE's first earth observation satellite has been developed by Satellite Technology Research Centre (SatRec) of South Korea with in-depth participation of UAE engineers from the EIAST.
Russian rocket sends Germany spy satellite into orbit
By Xinhua
Moscow : A Russian rocket sent a Germany spy satellite into orbit on Thursday night, Itar-Tass news agency reported.
The Russian carrier rocket Kosmos-3M lifted off from the Plesetsk space center in the north of European part of Russia at 20:15 Moscow Time (1715 GMT), carrying into orbit the Germany spy satellite SAR-Lupe-4.
Lieutenant-Colonel Alexei Zolotukhin, a spokesman for Russia's Space Troops said the satellite is expected to get to the designated orbit at 20:43 Moscow Time.
Launch of Mars lander delayed
By DPA
Washington : The planned launch of the Phoenix Mars lander has been pushed back, according to NASA.
Phoenix is now scheduled to be fired into space from Florida's Kennedy Space Centre aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket Saturday at either 5.26.34 a.m. or 6.02.59 a.m.
Poor weather at the space centre kept NASA from fuelling the rocket Tuesday afternoon and led to the decision to delay the launch.
Washington : The planned launch of the Phoenix Mars lander has been pushed back, according to NASA.
Phoenix is now scheduled to be fired into space from Florida's Kennedy Space Centre aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket Saturday at either 5.26.34 a.m. or 6.02.59 a.m.
Poor weather at the space centre kept NASA from fuelling the rocket Tuesday afternoon and led to the decision to delay the launch.
UAE company to invest $2 bn in solar energy technology
By IANS,
Abu Dhabi : The United Arab Emirates (UAE) based energy company Masdar has announced that it would invest $2 billion in solar energy technology, WAM news agency reported Thursday.
Masdar, which is owned by the Abu Dhabi government, plans to set up two plants for manufacturing solar panels.
The first plant would be based in Germany and would become operational in 2009 while the second one would be set up in Abu Dhabi and would become operational in 2010.
NASA’s Phoenix lifts first scoop of Martian soil
By Xinhua,
Washington : One week after landing on far-northern Mars, NASA Phoenix spacecraft lifted its first scoop of Martian soil as a test of the lander's Robotic Arm, NASA reported on Monday.
The practice scoop was emptied onto a designated dump area on the ground after the Robotic Arm Camera photographed the soil inside the scoop. The Phoenix team plans to have the arm deliver its next scoopful, later this week, to an instrument that heats and sniffs the sample to identify ingredients.
Scientists can now predict quake effects within seconds
By DPA
Rome : Italian scientists have said they can now predict the destructive powers of an earthquake just seconds after the start of a tremor, thus providing a potentially life-saving advance warning to affected populations.
Researchers at the University of Naples and at the National Institute of Geophysics and Vulcanology (INGV) in Rome analysed more than 200 earthquakes with magnitudes ranging from 4.0 to 7.4 on the Richter scale and found that the waves generated in the first few seconds of a tremor carry enough information to determine its destructive potential.
Bacterium disables tomato plant’s defences – stealthily
By IANS,
London : A bacterium disables the tomato plant's defences stealthily, activating disease and blight, according to a new study.
The new finding focuses on a pathogen which causes bacterial speck disease in tomato plants. This bacterial invasion causes black lesions on leaves and fruit.
Scientists found the pathogen is very effective at attacking tomato plants because it deactivates and destroys receptors which normally alert the plant to the presence of a dangerous disease - in the same way that an intruder would deactivate the burglar alarm before gaining entry to a house.
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.
‘No fresh evidence to indicate Bay of Bengal tsunami’
By Avijit Chatterjee, IANS
Kolkata : The Geological Survey of India has allayed fears of a tsunami hitting the Bay of Bengal soon - though the findings of an Australian geologist suggest that a giant undersea earthquake could inundate India, Bangladesh and Myanmar.
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.
Researchers stumble on cell’s neatest little tricks
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers have solved one of our bodies' neatest little tricks - how a cell pinches molecules from outside without allowing any leakage ot its membranes.
"Doing this without leaking is quite a feat," said Sandra Schmid, who heads Scripps Research department of cell biology and co-authored the paper with Thomas Pucadyil, a postdoctoral researcher in her lab.
"A cell's outside environment is very nasty, and if any of that toxic fluid got into the cell, it would kill it," added Schmid.
Agenda for India: Telecom
TwoCircles.net presents “Agenda for India”. Series editor is Charu Bahri.
Challenges & Solutions
“I would cite the issue of spectrum allocation and management as one of the foremost challenges of India’s telecom sector,” says Yusuf Motiwala, Founder & CEO, TringMe. “The government must wake up to the losses accumulating on account of under-utilization of spectrum and due to the delay in rolling out 3G services.”
NASA spacecraft flies by Mercury for second time
By Xinhua,
Washington : NASA spacecraft MESSENGER has successfully made the second of the three planned flybys of Mercury on Monday, taking pictures of most of its remaining unseen surface.
The spacecraft passed 125 miles (about 200 km) above the planet's cratered surface, capturing more than 1,200 pictures and collecting a variety of science data.
Mission scientists hope to begin receiving the new data from MESSENGER in the very early morning on Tuesday.
Cuba uses biotechnology to revive coffee industry
By IANS,
Havana: Cuban researchers are trying to revive the nation's wilting coffee production by using bio-technology, an expert said.
Giant observatory comes up 8,000 feet beneath Antarctic
By IANS,
London : The world's strangest observatory, as big as a cubic kilometre, has come up 8,000 feet beneath the Antarctic ice at the South Pole.
Space association calls for UN strategy against asteroids
By DPA,
Vienna : The international Association of Space Explorers (ASE) Tuesday called on the UN to develop strategies against asteroids threatening to hit earth, in a report presented at the UN headquarters in Vienna.
Among the known 5,600 so-called near-earth objects, and the 500,000 additional ones expected to be discovered in the next 15 years, "several dozen will pose an uncomfortably high risk of striking Earth and inflicting local or regional devastation," the astronauts said in their report.
China plans to launch unmanned space module next year
By IANS,
Beijing : China plans to launch an unmanned space module in 2011. It is expected to complete the country's first space docking which is regarded as an essential step toward building a space station, an official said Wednesday.
Tiangong-1, or the Heavenly Palace, would be later converted into a manned space lab after experimental dockings with three Shenzhou spacecraft. The spacecraft are expected to be put into space within two years following the module's launch, said Qi Faren, former chief designer of Shenzhou spaceships.
Supercomputer cracks Rubik’s Cube in 26 moves
By IANS
New York : A month after checkers was solved by a supercomputer, the machines have an answer to the Rubik's Cube too. A high-speed machine at Northeastern University, Boston, has proved that any of the cubes - no matter how intangible they look - can be properly aligned within just 26 moves.
Till now, the best way to crack the Rubik's Cube was in 27 moves. But Dan Kunkle and Prof Gene Cooperman at Northeastern University believe that with more work they could push the count even lower.
Google opens store for Chrome users
By DPA,
Mountain View (US) : Google has started up a portal for downloading extensions and web applications to its Chrome internet browser.
Space shuttle Atlantis makes final landing
By IANS,
Washington : Space shuttle Atlantis Thursday landed at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, bringing to a close the US's 30-year orbiter programme.
India to send two astronauts into space in 2016
By IANS,
Bangalore : India will launch its first manned mission in 2016 with two astronauts for a week-long odyssey in space, a top Indian space agency official said Wednesday.
"We are planning a human space flight in 2016, with two astronauts who will spend seven days in the earth's lower orbit," Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K. Radhakrishnan told reporters here.
China publishes first picture from lunar probe project
By Xinhua
Beijing : China published the first picture of the moon captured by Chang'e-1 Monday morning, marking the success of the country's first lunar probe project.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao unveiled the framed black-and-white photo at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center (BACC). The image showed a rough moon surface with scattered round craters both big and small.
The area covered by the picture, about 460 km in length and 280 km in width, is located within a 54 to 70 degrees south latitude and 57 to 83 degrees east longitude, according to BACC sources.
Over 3,000 dinosaur footprints found in China
By IANS,
Beijing : Archaeologists in China claim to have traced the evidence of mass migration of dinosaurs from the country's east more than 100 million years ago.
The large track of over 3,000 dinosaur footprints, which was found in Shandong province, was facing the same direction. This might be a result of migration or panic escape by plant-eating dinosaurs after facing a surprise raid from meat-eating counterparts, according to experts.
Vodafone reaches 100 million subscribers in India
By IANS,
New Delhi: Mobile telephony provider Vodafone Essar has crossed the landmark of 100 million subscribers in India, the telecom operator said Thursday.
After Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications (RCom), Vodafone is the third company in India to reach the milestone of 100 million customers. In terms of revenue, it is India's second largest operator.
Researchers create most comprehensive moon map
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers have created the most detailed and comprehensive map of the moon's complex landscape thanks to data provided by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO).
Our moon uncommon, say astronomers
By IANS
New York : Though moons are common enough in the universe, ours is rather uncommon, according to a new study by US astronomers.
The Earth's moon, the subject of much art, myth and poetry, was formed out of a tremendous collision, a rare event seen in less than 10 percent of moon formations, Sciencedaily.com reported.
The study, based on new observations by NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, was undertaken by researchers at the University of Florida and appears in the latest edition of the Astrophysical Journal.
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.
World misled over glacier meltdown: Report
By IRNA,
New Delhi : A warning that most of the Himalayan glaciers will melt by 2035 owing to climate change is likely to be retracted after the United Nations body that issued it admitted to a series of scientific blunders.
Two years ago, the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) headed by India's Rajendra Pachauri, issued a benchmark report that claimed to have incorporated the latest and most detailed research into the impact of global warming.
A central claim was that world's glaciers were melting so fast that those in the Himalayas could vanish by 2035.
Iran to launch first domestic satellite by March
By RIA Novosti,
Tehran : Iran plans to put its first domestically made communication satellite into orbit by March 20, the head of the Iranian space agency has said.
"If we do not run into problems, the first domestic satellite will be put in orbit by the end of this (Iranian solar calendar) year," Reza Taqipour said.
Technical experts were working to complete the preparations, he said, adding that the precise launch date for the Omid, or Hope, satellite would be announced as it drew nearer.
Iran dismisses US concern over space research drive
By IANS
Tehran : Iran Tuesday dismissed the US concern over its space research programme and said that the launch of Explorer-1 rocket is only for research studies.
"The government is responsible for progress and development of the country and is not responsible for others' concern," Iranian government spokesman Gholam-Hossein Elham said during his weekly press conference, official IRNA news agency reported.
India plans to launch reusable rocket by 2010
By NNN-PTI
Banglore : India plans to launch a reusable rocket for the first time by 2010, says its space agency chief.
"Our target (for the first launch) is before 2010," Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), G Madhavan Nair, told PTI.
The space scientists have already designed a "demonstrator" to measure parameters of the vehicle and further work is in progress, Nair, also Secretary in the Department of Space and Chairman of Space Commission, said.
Endeavour makes picture-perfect docking at space station
By DPA
Washington : The shuttle Endeavour docked early Thursday at the International Space Station, completing another picture-perfect part of its mission after a flawless launch, US space officials said.
After docking, the station's three-member resident crew and the seven-member Endeavour crew opened the hatches between the craft at 0528 GMT Thursday to begin 12 days of joint operations.
Engineers invent lens for 3D microscope
By IANS,
Washington : Engineers have designed a lens that enables microscopic objects to be seen from nine different angles at once to create a 3D image.
‘Heat stroke’ caused India’s lunar probe to fail – report
By RIA Novosti,
New Delhi : India's first lunar mission may have failed as a result of overheating, a national daily reported on Monday.
Chandrayaan-1 was launched in October 2008 and its main mission was conducting geological mapping of the Moon's surface aimed at producing a complete map of the chemical characteristics and 3-D topography. Chandrayaan means Moon Craft in Sanskrit.
Russia launches Proton carrier rocket
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russia has successfully conducted a delayed launch of a Proton carrier rocket from the Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan, the Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos) said Friday.
The Proton-K rocket, which has been on the launch pad since Monday, lifted off at 11.35 a.m. Moscow time (7.35 a.m. GMT) and put in orbit three Glonass (Global Navigation Satellite System) satellites, the space agency said.
PSLV rocket launch successful, five satellites put into orbit
By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : Five satellites, including the advanced high resolution cartography satellite Cartosat-2B, were placed in orbit Monday after India's space agency ISRO successfully launched its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket from here.
"I am extremely happy to say PSLV 16 was a successful flight. All the satellites were injected precisely," Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman K. Radhakrishnan said.
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.
Scientists start regional network to study earthquakes in Himalayas
By Sujit Chakraborty, IANS,
Agartala : The Holy Grail for geologists is the ability to predict an earthquake. While they continue their search, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) is putting in place a network by which they can forecast overall seismic activity in the Himalayas, one of the most quake-prone regions of the world.
Google 3D medical browser maps human body
By IANS,
London : Google has developed a new browser that maps the human body in detail.
India’s own probe also found water on moon: ISRO
By IANS,
Bangalore : India's own Moon Impact Probe (MIP) on board the country's maiden lunar craft had discovered water on the moon, a finding confirmed by US space agency NASA's probe that was also aboard Chandrayaan-1, India's top space scientist G. Madhavan Nair said here Friday.
India's first lunar mission had made a "path-breaking and real discovery" by establishing the presence of water on the moon, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman Nair said.
Google’s new OS could hit Microsoft where it hurts
By Andy Goldberg, DPA,
San Francisco : It's the ultimate showdown in the technology world, the clash of giants that has been eagerly awaited for years. Web giant Google is taking its clearest aim yet at Microsoft with its plan to produce its own operating system that would optimise the way computers work on the Internet.
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.
We are facing a digital doomsday
By Venkata Vemuri, IANS,
London : The digital doomsday is round the corner. In exactly 1,273 days there will be a web chaos in the world as we run out of internet addresses.
More than 85 percent of the available addresses have already been allocated and the rest will run out by 2011, according to a prediction by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Haryana scientists develop milk-testing kit
By IANS,
Chandigarh : An innovative 'milk urea detection kit' has been developed by the scientists of the Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU) in Haryana's Hisar town, the university's vice chancellor K.S. Khokhar announced Friday.
Khokhar said that with this kit, milk could be checked for the presence of urea in it - even at home.
Making computers more user-friendly for disabled
By IANS,
Washington : Efforts are underway to come up with a more user-friendly computer that responds to physically challenged individuals.
Current designs are particularly frustrating for the disabled, the elderly and anybody who has trouble with a mouse.
A new approach developed by Washington University researchers would put each person through a brief skills test and generate a mathematically based version of the user interface optimised for his or her vision and motor abilities.
Astronomers banking on new tech to trace ETs
By IANS,
Washington : Astronomers are banking on a promising new technology to trace extra-terrestrials in the same way that one locates "a needle in a haystack".
The Allen Telescope Array (ATA) comprises hundreds of small dishes that combine modern, miniaturised electronics and innovative technologies with computer processing.
It endows researchers with the capability to search for possible signals from advanced civilisations elsewhere in our galaxy - if they are transmitting in this direction.
Scientists tackling Internet’s ‘black holes’
By IANS
Washington : You might have heard of distant black holes swallowing up light or crunching ship-sized objects into tiny teaspoon replicas. But what about black holes in cyberspace, here on earth every day?
At any given moment, a portion of the vast computer traffic disappears into these vast sinks, out of reach or trace. Try logging into the web. It could be a very frustrating experience.
Google’s Chrome browser focuses on speed, not extras
By Philipp Laage, DPA,
Munich : Google threw its hat into the browser ring back in 2008. Chrome is what they called their new product, now available in its third iteration. A beta version of the fourth generation is currently making the rounds as well.
While Chrome itself is clearly rapidly changing, one thing seems constant: the developers at Google have their sights on a portion of the market share held by titans Internet Explorer and Firefox.
Over 700 Russian scientists part of Large Hadron Collider project
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : The development of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the world's largest and most powerful particle accelerator, has involved over 700 Russian physicists from 12 research institutes, a project coordinator said Monday.
The $5.8 billion international project, which will be officially unveiled on October 21 at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known by its French initials CERN, has involved more than 2,000 physicists from hundreds of universities and laboratories in 34 countries since 1984.
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.
Abu Dhabi to host international IT conference
By IANS/WAM,
Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi will host an international conference on information technology supported by the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
India’s moon impact probe to hit lunar surface Friday
By IANS,
Chennai : The moon impact probe (MIP) abroad India's first lunar spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 is expected to hit the lunar surface Friday evening, said a top official of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
"Ninety-five percent of the moon mission is over successfully. I am not in a position to say when the MIP will land on the moon," ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair told reporters on the sidelines of a seminar here Thursday.
According to him the unmanned Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft will map the moon to get an idea about the minerals present there.
Martian soil may contain toxic compounds harmful to life: NASA
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : Martian soil could contain a toxic substance that would make it less likely that life formed there, data gathered by NASA's Phoenix lander on the red planet has revealed.
Earlier NASA said Phoenix analysers detected water in the soil, which suggested that Mars could have the conditions for life. However, if the presence of perchlorate were confirmed, the probability of detecting living organisms there would be reduced.
Genetically modified plants likely to yield more biofuel
By IANS,
Washington : Genetically modified plants will open up ways to make cheaper, greener biofuels, besides helping turn agricultural waste into food for livestock.
Lignin, a major component of plants, is woven in with cellulose and provides plants with the strength to withstand strong gusts of wind and microbial attack. However, this protective barrier or "plastic wall" also makes it harder to gain access to the cellulose.
Indian-American scientist develops arsenic-resistant Bt rice
By IANS,
Washington : The presence of arsenic in the soil in parts of eastern India and Bangladesh has adversely affected rice production, as also the health of people who eat the contaminated rice.
Scientists now claim to have a solution to the problem: genetically engineered rice plants that resist intake of the toxin.
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.
Unique, magnetic death star fossil discovered
By IANS,
Washington : Scientists have discovered microscopic, magnetic fossils resembling spears and spindles, among sediment layers deposited during an ancient global-warming event along the Atlantic coastal plain.
The researchers were led by geobiologists from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and McGill University.
Fifty-five million years ago, earth warmed by more than nine degrees Fahrenheit after huge amounts of carbon entered the atmosphere over a period of just a few thousand years.
With ‘Nazi news’, blog played super prank on media
By Frederick Noronha, IANS,
Panaji : A blog run out of Goa anonymously has claimed credit for misleading large sections of the Indian media by planting an untrue story about a "Nazi" being held along the state's border with Karnataka.
By Tuesday evening, the blog, penpricks.blogspot.com, which often pillories the functioning of the media, claimed credit for unveiling "one of the most telling stories on the Goan as well as the Indian media".
India, Russia in talks on moon exploration
By IANS,
New Delhi : India and Russia are cooperating vis-a-vis the Chandrayaan-2 satellite for joint moon cooperation.
India’s space programmes based on its needs: Outgoing chief
By Venkatachari Jagannathan,
Chennai, Oct 31 (IANS) India does not look at other Asian countries like Japan and China as competitors in the space sector as its programmes are based on its needs, said Madhavan Nair, who retired Saturday as chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
"Our programmes are based on the practical needs of the people like remote sensing, health and education. India is not looking to compete with any other country in the space sector," Nair told IANS from Thiruvananthapuram on phone.
Birds of a flock work together
By Ernest Gill, DPA,
Hamburg (Germany) : Hitchcock was right: birds do cooperate to solve tasks which no individual bird could master alone, says a team of German scientists.
Until now, such group problem-solving efforts have been thought to be restricted to humans and other primates, such as chimpanzees. But the team of scientists headed by Amanda Seed at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, discovered the same group techniques used among pairs of rooks.
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.
Mixing plant extracts for treatments could be harmful
By IANS
London : Scientists in Britain have warned that treatment of individual health problems by mixing different combination of plant extracts could cause more harm then good to the patient.
Herb practitioners in different parts of the world, including India, mix different combinations of plant extracts to treat ailments, including asthma and arthritis.
The researchers looked at 1,300 published articles on the subject and analysed the only three found to be randomised clinical trials.
The latest must have – sunglasses with built-in digital camera
By DPA,
New York : Want to take a photo immediately? No photo opportunity will be lost if you have a pair of sunglasses with an integrated digital camera.
A tiny lens has been built into the frame of the $100 sunglasses and uses 1.3 mega pixels to take still images. Fans just have to press a button to take a photo or use the remote control which can be kept in your pocket.
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.
Binocular telescope captures 3D celestial images
By IANS
Washington : A giant binocular telescope on Mount Graham in Arizona has taken celestial images in 3D for the first time, using its twin, 28-foot primary mirrors together.
The images are not only a milestone for the telescope, now the world's most powerful, but also for astronomy itself, said researchers, Sciencedaily reported.
US, Italy and Germany have partnered for the telescope, known as LBT. They are now releasing the images. University of Arizona owns part of its observing time.
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.
Vodafone M-Pesa joins hands with Walmart India
New Delhi: Vodafone India has entered into a strategic tie-up with Walmart India that will enable its business members of six Best Price Modern...
Salt-tolerant gene may revolutionise farming
By IANS
New York : The secret of why a plant withers or thrives in salty condition has been found in the cellular mechanism of arabidopsis, a plant species, according to a study. The findings could have enormous implications for salt-affected croplands, which form half the world's
cultivated area.
Salty soil means plants don't grow as well and therefore yield less.
Researchers have discovered that a complex carbohydrate called N-glycan, which is linked to protein in the plant, may be responsible for its ability to contend with salt water.
Germans developing battery that never needs recharging
By DPA
Hamburg : Tired of mobile phones that always need recharging at the worst moments, researchers in Germany are developing a revolutionary new battery that will never need recharging.
Mobile phones, notebook computers and iPods are all devices dependent on rechargeable lithium-ion batteries to deliver power.
But the German researchers have developed a new class of inorganic ionic conductor with a structure analogous to that of the mineral argyrodite.
Scientists spot largest molecules in space
By IANS,
London : Scientists in Canada have spotted the largest molecules existing in space called buckyballs.
The roughly spherical molecules consist of a "third type of carbon", after graphite and diamond, which occur widely on earth.
Buckyballs, on the other hand, have only been created in labs and have never before been proven to exist elsewhere, reports The Telegraph.
The BBC reported that a research group used an infrared telescope owned by Nasa to spot the buckyballs in "a cloud of cosmic dust surrounding a distant star".
Egyptian mummies show heart disease had ancient origin
By IANS,
Washington : Hardening of arteries detected in Egyptian mummies as early as 3,500 years shows that heart attacks and strokes had ancient origins.
"Atherosclerosis... despite differences in ancient and modern lifestyles... was rather common in ancient Egyptians of high socio-economic status living as much as three millennia ago," says Gregory Thomas, co-principal investigator.
"The findings suggest that we may have to look beyond modern risk factors to fully understand the disease," says Thomas, University of California-Irvine (UC-I) professor of cardiology.
Space shuttle Atlantis blasts off
By DPA,
Cape Canaveral (Florida) : The space shuttle Atlantis thundered into the sky over Kennedy Space Centre Monday carrying six crew members on a mission to the International Space Station.
The mission is part of the US space agency's efforts to stock up the ISS reserves as the shuttle programme enters its expected final year in 2010. After this week's mission there are just five more flights scheduled.
Russia claims 1.2 million km of Arctic
By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russian scientists have claimed 1.2 million km of potentially energy-rich Arctic territory following preliminary research results released here Thursday.
"Preliminary results of an analysis of the Earth's crust show that the structure of the underwater Lomonosov mountain chain is similar to the world's other continental shelves, and the ridge is, therefore, part of Russia's landmass," the Russian Natural Resources Ministry said.
Astronauts at space station kick off first of five spacewalks
By Xinhua
Washington : Two astronauts at the International Space Station kicked off the first of a series of spacewalks to assemble new components for the orbital outpost, NASA TV reported Thursday.
The U.S. space shuttle Endeavour's crew member Rick Linnehan and Expedition 16 Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman stepped out of the station at 9:18 p.m. EDT on Thursday (0118 GMT on Friday). The excursion will last for about six hours and a half.
Chandrayaan-2 to take off in 2017
New Delhi : India's second lunar probe, Chandrayaan-2, is planned to be launched in 2017, the parliament was told on Thursday.
"The Chandrayaan-2, India's second...
NASA’s Messenger sends pictures from Mercury flyby
By DPA,
Washington : NASA Tuesday published photographs sent by its Messenger spacecraft of a flyby of Mercury earlier this week, providing researchers a new view of the planet closest the Sun.
Messenger came within just 200 km of Mercury early Monday in the second of three planned flybys for the craft. It is due to settle into orbit around Mercury in 2011, providing what scientists hope will be the most complete picture yet of the solar system's smallest planet.
ISRO to launch more satellites this year
By Venkatachari Jagannathan, IANS,
Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh) : After successfully placing five satellites in orbit Monday, India's space agency ISRO said it will launch more satellites this year and efforts were on to put two Indians in space orbit.
"We will launch GSat-5, a communication satellite, using GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) rocket. The other launch will be Resourscesat-2, a remote sensing satellite, using the rocket PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle)," Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K. Radhakrishnan said here.
ITC plans greenfield paper plant, major hotel expansion
By IANS,
Kolkata: Tobacco-to-hotels major ITC Ltd is planning to set up a $1-billion greenfield paper plant and expand its hotel business, a top company official said here Friday.
"We are looking at an investment of Rs.4,000-5,000 crore for paper plant. The paper plant is likely to require 1,500-2,000 acres," ITC chairman Y.C. Deveshwar said.
The company is scouting for land in three states - Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh - but has not been successful in bagging any plot yet.
Paper thin tablet!
By IANS,
London: A revolutionary tablet as thin and flexible as paper that can be twisted or dropped without suffering damage is set to be showcased soon in American city of Las Vegas.
Stabilising current CO2 emission levels not enough to save coral reefs
By IANS,
Washington : Even if greenhouse gas emission is stabilised at current levels, it would still be enough to cause acidification of oceans and sound the death knell of coral reefs.
Ocean acidification could devastate coral reefs and other marine ecosystems even if atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) stabilizes at 450 parts per million (PPM), a level well below that of many climate change forecasts.
NASA to beam Beatles’ song “Across the Universe” to Polaris
By Xinhua
Beijing : NASA will broadcast next Monday the Beatles' song "Across the Universe" across the galaxy to Polaris, the North Star, to celebrateds the 40th anniversary of the song and the 50th anniversary of NASA, according to media reports Saturday.
Beijing : NASA will broadcast next Monday the Beatles' song "Across the Universe" across the galaxy to Polaris, the North Star, to celebrateds the 40th anniversary of the song and the 50th anniversary of NASA, according to media reports Saturday.
Spanish discovery sheds light on early humans in Europe
By Sinikka Tarvainen, DPA
Madrid : More than a million years ago, a group of early humans lived in a cave in a lush green area in northern Spain, making stone tools and eating small herbivores and other animals.
Their presence in what is now the fossil site of Atapuerca near Burgos has become known thanks to the discovery of a lower jawbone with teeth, lithic tools and animal remains.
Nine of 10 e-mails are spam
By DPA,
Mainz (Germany) : Most daily e-mails are not sent between friends or even business partners. Instead, 92 percent of e-mails sent between January and March 2008 were spam.
This was revealed by Sophos, a Mainz-based information technology security firm that regularly monitors internet mail.
The United States remains the world champion when it comes to spam as more than 15 percent originated there, the firm said.
Sophos, however, did not track the number of spams actually reaching the mailboxes of internet users.
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.
Scientists track movement of atoms in real time
By IANS,
Washington : A new technique tracks movement of freely moving single neutral atoms in real time, that is more than 99.7 percent accurate and sensitive enough to discern the arrival of a single atom in less than a millionth of a second.
The system, developed by researchers at the Joint Quantum Institute (JQI) in College Park and the Universidad de Concepcion in Chile, employs a novel means of altering the polarisation of laser light trapped between two highly-reflective mirrors, according to a JQI release.
NASA extends Discovery mission
By DPA,
Washington : The US space agency NASA Saturday extended by one day space shuttle Discovery's mission at the International Space Station.
The move was made to allow an inspection of Discovery's heat shield while the craft is still docked at the International Space Station.
Discovery is now slated to land at Kennedy Space Centre in Florida April 19 at 8:54 am (1824 IST).
The inspection has been standard procedure since the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated on reentry into the Earth's atmosphere in 2003 after its heat shield was damaged.
Ghazal festival to be live-streamed online
Mumbai : The annual ‘Khazana - A Festival of Ghazals’ concert, which will bring together renowned ghazal artists like Pankaj Udhas and Rekha Bhardwaj,...
Microsoft opens Windows 8 in india
By IANS,
Bangalore: Global software major Microsoft late Thursday unveiled its Windows 8 version of the operation system in India as part of its worldwide launch.
Online applications can lead to first job
By Rebecca Mueller, DPA,
Stuttgart : Applying for a job used to be expensive what with the costs of printing CVs, buying special binders and then the costs of posting it. The first step into professional life quickly proved expensive and time-consuming.
Nowadays, the Internet has the process simpler. Job applicants can scan job openings quickly and efficiently online and contact potential employers by e-mail. Nonetheless, online applications have their own risks for people just starting their career.
New software to help empty stadiums during bomb threats
By IANS,
Washington : Imagine trying to get out of a stadium with 70,000 fans after a bomb explodes, or even a bomb threat. For an evacuation on this scale, there are no dress rehearsals or practice drills - just simulation software.
A new breed of simulation software - dubbed SportEvac - is being funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) as part of the Southeast Region Research Initiative (SERRI), and developed and tested by the National Centre for Spectator Sports Safety & Security (NCS4) at the University of Southern Mississippi.
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.
NASA spacecraft takes look at comet from closest
By IANS,
London : NASA's Deep Impact craft flew within 435 miles (700 km) of comet Hartley 2 -- the closest ever any man-made object got to such a celestial body.
Two die as people swarm river banks during eclipse
By IANS,
Varanasi : Two people died and four were injured when thousands swarmed the banks of the Ganga here Wednesday morning to take a dip in the holy water, believed to be further blessed by the total solar eclipse.
"One person drowned and the other got crushed in a stampede. The names of the dead are yet to be determined," said P.C. Meena, deputy inspector general of police (DIG).
Just like the Ganga was overwhelmed with people, the Saryu river in Ayodhya also attracted a crowd on this rare occasion.
Researchers develop ‘astro-comb’ to locate earth-like planets
By IANS,
Washington : The ability to detect presence of extrasolar planets orbiting distant stars has got better with researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre for Astrophysics creating an "astro-comb" to detect lighter planets, more like the Earth, around distant stars.
In most cases, extrasolar planets can't be seen directly - the glare of the nearby star is too great - but their influence can be discerned through spectroscopy, which analyses the kind of light emanating from the star.
Microsoft launches on-demand e-mail solutions in India
By IANS,
New Delhi : In order to enable easy access to its cost-effective business productivity software, Microsoft Thursday launched its online services in India.
Starting at $2 (about Rs.100) a month, the service will allow small and medium business and enterprise customers to access Microsoft's e-mail, collaboration, conferencing and productivity capabilities online.
Customers can access the suite directly from www.microsoft.com/india/onlineservices and pay a use-based monthly subscription fee.
China launches new navigation satellite
By IANS,
Beijing : China successfully launched a fifth orbiter into space Sunday as a part of its indigenous satellite navigation and global positioning network.
The satellite was launched at 5.30 a.m. from the Long March 3I carrier rocket, Xinhua reported.
The satellite will join other four satellites in orbit to form a network that will eventually consist of 35 satellites.
The world’s first robot with conscience
By IANS/EFE,
Madrid : Spain has designed the world's first robot with its own "conscience" and "life", which will "entertain, teach and be a companion" to humans who purchase it.
The AISoy 1, which will go on sale in August, is the first social android developed by Spanish firm AISoy Robotics, which is now bringing its creation out of the laboratory.
"It almost seems like science fiction, but it's a reality," said Diego Garcia, one of the "fathers" of the robot and head of AISoy's product engineering and development division.
Scientists locate breeding ground of rarest bird
By IANS,
Washington : Researchers have located the breeding ground of a species dubbed "the world's least known bird" -- the large-billed reed warbler, in the remote Wakhan reaches of Afghanistan.
The recent discovery represents a watershed moment in the study of this bird. The first specimen of such warblers was discovered in India in 1867, with well over a century elapsing before a second discovery of a single bird in Thailand in 2006.
‘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.
Why ‘7’ could be Microsoft’s lucky number
By Hitesh Raj Bhagat,
Microsoft Thursday launched the next version of Windows, dubbed Windows 7. The problem is: a majority of current Windows users still use XP, which is getting to be nine years old now.
After the launch of Windows Vista, people had no option but to buy PCs pre-loaded with Vista. Some paid extra to "downgrade" to Windows XP.
The main issues with Vista? Widespread reports of sluggishness, frequent hangs and crashes, and incompatibility with certain software and hardware. Vista was basically a troublesome experience.
India tests n-capable Agni-I missile
By IANS,
Bhubaneswar: India Friday successfully test-fired its indigenously developed nuclear-capable surface-to-surface Agni-I missile from a military base in Odisha, a defence official said.
U.S. scientists map first nanoscale image of soil
By Xinhua,
Washington : Researchers from Cornell University has looked "closely" at the soil for the first time -- at a scale of 50 nanometers, revealing an incredible variety of organic compounds in it, reported the April issue of Nature Geoscience which is available Monday.
"There is this incredible nanoscale heterogeneity of organic matter in terms of soil," said Johannes Lehmann, lead author of the study, in a statement on Monday. "None of these compounds that you can see on a nanoscale level looks anything close to the sum of the entire organic matter."
Scientists advocate new method for better rice yields
By IANS
Agartala : India could meets its food grain demand of 220 million tonnes in the next five years if farmers adopt the Madagascar model of cultivation instead of the conventional method, scientists Thursday said.
World’s biggest telescope to seek new galaxies
By Sinikka Tarvainen, DPA,
Madrid : Thousands of years ago, the original inhabitants of Spain's Canary Islands are thought to have worshipped the Roque de los Muchachos mountain as having magical powers. On Friday, the mountain will officially become home to a telescope billed as the world's biggest time machine.
The instrument will allow scientists to seek new answers to the origin of the universe.
The Grantecan or GTC, which are abbreviations for "large telescope of the Canary Islands", is the biggest among only about a dozen comparable telescopes in the world.
Bio-nanotechnology will help India’s food security: Pawar
By IANS
New Delhi : Advances in the area of bio-nanotechnology would go a long way in helping India's food security, Minister for Food and Agriculture Sharad Pawar said here Wednesday.
"Bio-nanotechnology takes agriculture from the era of genetically modified (GM) crops to the brave new world of atomically modified organisms," Pawar said, speaking at the inaugural session of the three-day Fifth Knowledge Millennium Summit on "B2B Bio and Nanotechnology" organised by industry body Assocham.
Chinese scientists uncloak invisible object
By IANS,
Washington : Chinese scientists have shown how certain materials beneath an invisibility cloak could allow them to be seen again.
"Cloaking is an important problem since invisibility can help survival in hostile environment," said Huanyang Chen of Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China.
He and his colleagues have proposed a theoretical "anti-cloak" that would partially cancel the effect of the invisibility cloak, which is another important problem as it turns out.
Ariane 5 rocket blasts off, taking Brazilian, Vietnamese satellites into space
By Xinhua,
Paris : An Ariane 5 rocket blasted off Friday at the Kourou launch center, French Guiana, on the northeast coast of South America, carrying Brazilian, Vietnamese satellites, Arianespace said.
It was the 24th consecutive successful mission by an Ariane 5 rocket, and the second of seven planned flights for 2008.
Hundreds of new species discovered in the Himalayas
By IANS,
Washington : Over 350 new species, including the world's smallest deer, a "flying frog" and a 100 million-year-old gecko, have been discovered in the Eastern Himalayas, according to a World Wildlife Fund (WWF) report.
A decade of research carried out by scientists in remote mountain areas endangered by rising global temperatures brought exciting discoveries such as a bright green frog that uses its red and long webbed feet to glide in the air.
Whale songs heard for first time around New York
By IANS,
New York : Scientists have, for the first time, recorded the beckoning calls of endangered fin, humpback and North Atlantic right whales in the waters around this US city.
"This is an exciting time for New Yorkers. Just think, just miles from the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State building, Carnegie Hall and Times Square, the great whales are singing," said Chris Clark, director of the Bioacoustics research programme at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Beetle ancestors 70 mln years older than dinosaurs
By Xinhua
Beijing : Researchers have discovered that when it comes to longevity dinosaurs can't hold a candle when compared to beetles.
Prior to the latest study, beetle species were thought to have begun scurrying around some 140 millions years ago, about the same time as the rise of flowering plants.
Prior to the latest study, beetle species were thought to have begun scurrying around some 140 millions years ago, about the same time as the rise of flowering plants.
Reliance Communications wins top CDMA operator award
By IANS
New Delhi : Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Communications has been adjudged the world's top mobile service provider based on code division multiple access (CDMA) technology.
The award was conferred upon the company by the CDMA Development Group (CDG), a trade body aimed at fostering worldwide development, implementation and use of CDMA technologies.