Tag: physical sciences
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Graphene as Rust-Proof Coating for Steel in Development
Chemistry researchers from University at Buffalo in New York are developing a process for rust-proofing steel using a graphene-based composite as a coating. The Indian steel manufacturer Tata Steel is participating in the research by chemistry professor Sarbajit Banerjee and doctoral candidate Robert Dennis. In early experiments, Banerjee and Dennis were able to increase the…
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Semiconductor Venture Investment Jumps in April
Venture capital investments in semiconductor companies worldwide rose significantly in April 2012, compared both to March and April 2011. The Global Semiconductor Alliance in London compiles and publishes these statistics each month. The organization reports that semiconductor companies received $194.2 million in venture capital in April 2012, a 10-fold increase over March 2012, and more…
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Two Paralyzed People Use Brain-Controlled Robotic Arms
Two stroke victims with tetraplegia — total loss of the use of limbs and torso — were able to control robotic arms with brain activity to reach, grasp, and use physical objects. The results of this study from the BrainGate project are reported today online in the journal Nature (paid subscription required). The BrainGate project…
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Technique Devised to Measure Pipeline Gas Bubbles
Researchers at University of Southampton in the U.K. have discovered a method to more accurately measure gas bubbles that develop in pipelines. The team led by Tim Leighton of Southampton’s Institute of Sound and Vibration Research describe their findings online in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A (paid subscription required). Pipelines are used…
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Engineering Students Build Inexpensive IV Drip Controller
A group of engineering undergraduate students at Rice University in Houston have built a simple device to control the flow of intravenous (IV) feeding tubes, like those used with children to treat dehydration. The students, who started the project earlier this year as freshmen, designed the IV device as part of the university’s Beyond Traditional…
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LED Process Adapts Ultraviolet Light to Kill Pathogens
Researchers from North Carolina and Japan have devised a light-emitting diode (LED) process that uses ultraviolet (UV) light to kill pathogens such as bacteria and viruses. Their discoveries are described in the May issue of the journal Applied Physics Letters (paid subscription required). The research team included materials scientists and engineers from North Carolina State…
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Funding Approved for Piracy, Policing Widget Development
The U.S. Office of Naval Research will fund development of compact Web applications, called widgets, to help international navies police for pirates and other illegal activities on the high seas. The $1 million award to support the International Collaborative Development for Enhanced Maritime Domain Awareness (ICODE MDA) project is expected to be made this fall…
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Biomaterials Developer Lands $10 Million Series C Funds
Regentis Biomaterials Ltd., based in Or Akiva, Israel and Princeton, New Jersey, has secured $10 million in series C funds, the third round of financing after initial start-up. New investors Royal DSM and Crossroad Fund, and existing investors Medica Venture Partners, SCPVitalife and the Technion Investment Opportunities Fund contributed to the round. The company’s lead…
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Low-Cost Nanoscale Catalyst Splits Hydrogen from Water
Researchers at Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York, part of the U.S. Department of Energy, have developed a new electrocatalyst that generates hydrogen gas from water cleanly and with much less expensive materials than current catalysts. Their findings are described online this week in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition (paid subscription required). Traditional methods…
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Canadian Aircraft Industry Funding Materials Scientist
A group of aircraft companies in Canada, with the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), are supporting the research of Suong Van Hoa at Concordia University on a new composite materials manufacturing technique. The funding, valued at $3.4 million, will support Hoa’s work for five years at the Montreal institution. Hoa (pictured…