Science and Enterprise

Month: June 2012

  • Cellulosic Biofuel Process Close to Cost-Competitive

    Chemical engineers at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana have devised a process for producing biofuels from non-food feedstocks they say is nearly cost-competitive with fossil fuels. An economic analysis of the process developed in the lab of Purdue’s Rakesh Agrawal is described in the journal Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery (paid subscription required). This method,…

  • Low-Dose, High-Rez CT Scanning Technique Developed

    Researchers from France, Germany, and Switzerland have devised an X-ray imaging technique that can improve the contrast of computed tomography (CT) scans while reducing the radiation dose of those scans. The results of the team led by Irene Zanette of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Grenoble, France will be published this week in the…

  • Math Model Helps Predict Future Medical Problems

    A University of Washington statistician, with colleagues from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Columbia University, have devised a mathematical model that predicts a patient’s possible medical conditions in the future based on the patient’s current and past medical history. The work of Washington’s Tyler McCormick (pictured right), with MIT’s Cynthia Rudin and Columbia’s David Madigan,…

  • Solar Developer Secures $70 Million in Venture Financing

    Nanosolar Inc. in San Jose, California says it has raised $70 million in new capital for further research and development and to expand production. This later-stage investment round includes current and new investors OnPoint Technologies, Inc., Mohr Davidow Ventures, Ohana Holdings LLC, and Family Offices. In February, the company secured $20 million in venture financing…

  • International Consortium Studies Corn Genome

    A collaboration of genetic and agricultural scientists from the U.S., Mexico, France, Kenya, and China have conducted a comprehensive analysis of the corn genome. The team, led by researchers from Cornell University and the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, and funded by USDA and National Science Foundation, published their findings online in the journal Nature Genetics…

  • U.S. STEM Grad Student Growth Rate Matches Foreign Students

    A National Science Foundation report says the number of U.S. science and engineering graduate students at American universities increased 35 percent from 2000 to 2010, the same rate as students from overseas. The numbers of women, African-American, Hispanic, and Native American grad students in science and engineering — which includes technology and mathematics, to make…

  • Alcohol Consumption Indicated as Atrial Fibrillation Cause

    Researchers at University of California in San Francisco have found evidence showing a causal link between alcohol consumption and atrial fibrillation, the most common form of arrhythmia or rapid heart beat. The results of the team led by medical professor Gregory Marcus were published online and will appear in the 1 August 2012 issue of…

  • Foundations, Medtronic to Partner on Glucose Monitoring

    JDRF and the Helmsley Charitable Trust have agreed to support work by Medtronic Inc. in Minneapolis on continuous glucose monitoring systems that can lead to development of an artificial pancreas. Financial details of that support were not disclosed. JDRF has awarded more than $1.6 billion to diabetes research since 1970, while the Helmsley Charitable Trust…

  • National Lab Develops Demonstration Community Fuel Cell

    Engineers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) in Richland, Washington have created a more efficient fuel cell system that can provide electric power for neighborhoods. The PNNL researchers published their findings last month in the Journal of Power Sources (paid subscription required). The solid oxide fuel cell system developed at PNNL, a division of the…