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European Project to Advance Organic Solar Cells
The Belgian research institute Imec will lead a consortium of 17 European organizations and companies to develop a more commercially-viable organic photovoltaic technology. The X10D project, funded by the European Commission, aims to improve the efficiency of organic solar cells while retaining their low manufacturing costs. Organic solar cells are made from low-cost polymers that…
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Synthesized Methods Developed for Anti-Coagulant Drugs
Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York and University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill have developed a new method for producing the anti-coagulant drug fondaparinux that is purer, faster, and less expensive. Their findings, which the authors say offer a template for the discovery of other drugs, appear in the 28 October issue…
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EADS to Share Nanotech Patents with Russian Agency
The European aerospace consortium EADS and the Russian nanotechnology corporation RUSNANO have agreed to collaborate on research and development of nanotechnology-related products. The first stage of the partnership is to identify relevant patents in the EADS portfolio suited for new development by Russian industry. The EADS Group includes the Airbus, Astrium, Cassidian, and Eurocopter organizations,…
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Gates Foundation, China to Partner on Health, Agriculture
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and China’s Ministry of Science and Technology announced a partnership to support research and development and manufacturing of new products to improve global health and agriculture. Bill Gates and vice-minister Zhang Laiwu signed an agreement that they say affirms their focus on meeting the needs of developing countries and…
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Utah Engineering Program Develops Paraglider for Disabled
The University of Utah’s Ergonomics and Safety Program is partnering with an organization for paragliding and hang-gliding by the disabled to develop a paraglider that paraplegics can fly on their own. The program, part of the university’s engineering department, produced the Phoenix — that had its maiden flight this summer — with the organization Able…
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FDA Grant Funds Georgetown University Regulatory Center [Updated]
Update, 26 October 2011: A similar center of excellence will be established at University of Maryland in College Park, also funded by a $1 million FDA grant. Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. will establish a Center of Excellence in Regulatory Science and Innovation (CERSI), with initial funding from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The…
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Fund to Back Independent, Early Stage Science Companies
Entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel has started Breakout Labs, a funding source to help independent scientists and early-stage companies develop their most radical ideas. Thiel announced Breakout Labs last night at a meeting of Business Association of Stanford Entrepreneurial Students in California. Thiel aims to provide financing for visionaries whose ideas are too ahead of…
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Private-Public Consortium to Share IP on Tropical Diseases
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has formed a partnership with pharmaceutical companies and BIO Ventures for Global Health (BVGH) to share intellectual property and expertise to develop treatments for neglected tropical diseases, malaria, and tuberculosis. The partnership includes international and national research and public health agencies, as well as research universities and non-government organizations.…
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Genomic Sequencing Precisely Targets Food Pathogens
A collaboration of academic, industry, and government researchers have harnessed genomic sequencing to more precisely identify food pathogens. Their findings appeared online earlier this month in the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology (paid subscription required). To identify the source of outbreaks of food-borne illnesses, such as salmonella, public health authorities have up to now analyzed…
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Students Engineer Bread Yeast to Yield More Nutrients
Undergraduate students at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore have genetically engineered yeast cells used in making bread to produce more beta carotene. The project that the students call VitaYeast is the university’s entry in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) contest held 5-7 November at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Yeast helps make bread rise, but…