February 29, 2008 (Friday)

• The electronic nature of DNA
  DNA
  Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
  
   is revealed. This could lead to understanding how radiation
  Radiation
  In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...
  
   damages DNA and how it can spontaneously repair by an electric charge being sent through the helix. (EurekAlert)
• The Judge involved in the Wikileaks lawsuit has reversed his decision to block Wikileaks domain name. (Reuters)
• A Dell
  Dell
  Dell, Inc. is an American multinational information technology corporation based in 1 Dell Way, Round Rock, Texas, United States, that develops, sells and supports computers and related products and services. Bearing the name of its founder, Michael Dell, the company is one of the largest...
  
   presentation in March 2007 discussed how late changes to Windows Vista
  Windows Vista
  Windows Vista is an operating system released in several variations developed by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops, tablet PCs, and media center PCs...
  
   broke drivers and forced hardware vendors to "limp out with issues" when Vista launched. (NYTimes)

February 28, 2008 (Thursday)

• A new protein
  Protein
  Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
  
  -friendly chip that is 10 times smaller than existing sensors promises to detect a variety of diseases from one drop of urine
  Urine
  Urine is a typically sterile liquid by-product of the body that is secreted by the kidneys through a process called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous by-products, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
  
   or blood
  Blood
  Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
  
  . (NewScientist)

February 27, 2008 (Wednesday)

• Large carbon nanotube
  Carbon nanotube
  Carbon nanotubes are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material...
  
   sheets have been produced by an American company, with more strength than stainless steel
  Stainless steel
  In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
  
   and 1/30th of the density. The material can be folded and cut like paper. (Nature)
• Microsoft
  Microsoft
  Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
  
   has demonstrated its WorldWide Telescope
  WorldWide Telescope
  The WorldWide Telescope is a computer program created by Microsoft that displays the astronomical sky as maps, the 3D Universe, visualised data sets and animations. It was announced at the TED Conference in Monterey, California in February 2008. Users are able to pan around outer space and zoom as...
  
   which is an extensive virtual telescope that allows uses added context and news stories on what they are viewing. (CNet)

February 26, 2008 (Tuesday)

• Yale University
  Yale University
  Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
  
   scientists have created "artificial cell-like particles" to boost the T cell
  T cell
  T cells or T lymphocytes belong to a group of white blood cells known as lymphocytes, and play a central role in cell-mediated immunity. They can be distinguished from other lymphocytes, such as B cells and natural killer cells , by the presence of a T cell receptor on the cell surface. They are...
  
   activation and expansion 45-fold, important for fighting cancer
  Cancer
  Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
  
   and infectious diseases. (EurekAlert)
• University of Granada
  University of Granada
  The University of Granada is a public university located in Granada, Spain that enrolls approximately 80,000 students. The university also has campuses in Ceuta and Melilla. Every year, over 2,000 European students enroll in the UGR through the Erasmus Programme, making it the most popular...
  
   researchers have developed a new micropore material that can absorb a variety of organic solvent
  Solvent
  A solvent is a liquid, solid, or gas that dissolves another solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution that is soluble in a certain volume of solvent at a specified temperature...
  
   pollutants. (EurekAlert)
• The Planetary Society
  Planetary Society
  The Planetary Society is a large, publicly supported, non-government and non-profit organization that has many research projects related to astronomy...
  
   announced a $25,000 winner of 37 low-cost proposals to track asteroid
  Asteroid
  Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
  
   99942 Apophis
  99942 Apophis
  99942 Apophis is a near-Earth asteroid that caused a brief period of concern in December 2004 because initial observations indicated a small probability that it would strike the Earth in 2029. Additional observations provided improved predictions that eliminated the possibility of an impact on...
  
  , which has a 1 in 45,000 chance of impacting Earth
  Earth
  Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
  
   in 2036. (NewScientist)

February 25, 2008 (Monday)

• The U.S. Federal Communications Commission
  Federal Communications Commission
  The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
  
   (FCC) conducts a public hearing on Comcast
  Comcast
  Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
  
  's blocking of BitTorrent applications during high traffic periods; becoming an extension of the net neutrality debate and raising questions about ISP disclosure and the FCC's ability to act. (CNet)
• A lawsuit alleging Microsoft
  Microsoft
  Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
  
  's "Windows Vista Capable" marketing campaign was a bait and switch
  Bait and switch
  Bait-and-switch is a form of fraud, most commonly used in retail sales but also applicable to other contexts. First, customers are "baited" by advertising for a product or service at a low price; second, the customers discover that the advertised good is not available and are "switched" to a...
  
   tactic is granted class action
  Class action
  In law, a class action, a class suit, or a representative action is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court and/or in which a class of defendants is being sued...
  
   status. (InformationWeek.com)
• MetaRAM created by ex-AMD
  Advanced Micro Devices
  Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. or AMD is an American multinational semiconductor company based in Sunnyvale, California, that develops computer processors and related technologies for commercial and consumer markets...
  
   employees allows computers to quadruple their memory capacity (RAM
  Ram
  -Animals:*Ram, an uncastrated male sheep*Ram cichlid, a species of freshwater fish endemic to Colombia and Venezuela-Military:*Battering ram*Ramming, a military tactic in which one vehicle runs into another...
  
  ) with minimal cost, lower power consumption and higher performance. (TechNewsWorld)

February 23, 2008 (Saturday)

• Malicious websites are exploiting Facebook
  Facebook
  Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
  
   and MySpace
  MySpace
  Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
  
   ActiveX
  ActiveX
  ActiveX is a framework for defining reusable software components in a programming language-independent way. Software applications can then be composed from one or more of these components in order to provide their functionality....
  
   plug-ins made by Aurigma for image uploading. This enables hackers
  Hacker (computer security)
  In computer security and everyday language, a hacker is someone who breaks into computers and computer networks. Hackers may be motivated by a multitude of reasons, including profit, protest, or because of the challenge...
  
   to upload programs and create placeholders for future uploads. (WashingtonPost)

February 22, 2008 (Friday)

• Hacker group Cult of the Dead Cow
  Cult of the Dead Cow
  Cult of the Dead Cow, also known as cDc or cDc Communications, is a computer hacker and DIY media organization founded in 1984 in Lubbock, Texas. The group maintains a weblog on its site, also titled "Cult of the Dead Cow"...
  
   releases an open source automated vulnerability scanner using Google searching techniques to allow users and organizations to easily check the security of their web property. (CRN)
• Researchers at Princeton University
  Princeton University
  Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
  
   show that if DRAM
  Dram
  Dram or DRAM may refer to:As a unit of measure:* Dram , an imperial unit of mass and volume* Armenian dram, a monetary unit* Dirham, a unit of currency in several Arab nationsOther uses:...
  
   is chilled with compressed air it retains data significantly longer when the system is shut down. The security keys used for data-encryption remain and if read then encrypted systems can be easily compromised. (NYTimes)

February 21, 2008 (Thursday)

• Scientists precisely identify the cellular connections made when new memories are created. (TechnologyReview)
• The first 10 teams are revealed for Google Lunar X Prize
  Google Lunar X Prize
  The Google Lunar X PRIZE, abbreviated GLXP, sometimes referred to as Moon 2.0, is a space competition organized by the X Prize Foundation, and sponsored by Google. It was announced at the Wired Nextfest on 13 September 2007...
  
   which awards $20-million to the first private company to land a rover
  Lunar rover
  The Lunar Roving Vehicle or lunar rover was a battery-powered four-wheeled rover used on the Moon in the last three missions of the American Apollo program during 1971 and 1972...
  
   on the moon
  Moon
  The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
  
  . (CNet)
• Microsoft
  Microsoft
  Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
  
   launches a charm offensive to the open-source community; promising to not block non-commercial uses of its software patents. (CNet)
• AMD
  Advanced Micro Devices
  Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. or AMD is an American multinational semiconductor company based in Sunnyvale, California, that develops computer processors and related technologies for commercial and consumer markets...
  
   makes its AMD Performance Library
  AMD Performance Library
  Framewave is a high-performance optimized library consisting of low level APIs for image processing, signal processing, JPEG and video functionality. These APIs are programmed with task level parallelization and instruction level parallelism resulting in maximum performance on AMD multi-core...
  
   freely available allowing developers to further optimize performance for their applications. (CNet)

February 20, 2008 (Wednesday)

• The genetic pathway
  Genetic pathway
  A genetic pathway is the set of interactions occurring between a group of genes who depend on each other's individual functions in order to make the aggregate function of the network available to the cell...
  
   to oxidative stress
  Oxidative stress
  Oxidative stress represents an imbalance between the production and manifestation of reactive oxygen species and a biological system's ability to readily detoxify the reactive intermediates or to repair the resulting damage...
  
  , key to aging and many diseases, is discovered. (EurekAlert)
• Self-healing rubber
  Rubber
  Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...
  
   is developed by the Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution in Paris. (NewScientist)
• A new fiber-optic signal amplifier
  Optical amplifier
  An optical amplifier is a device that amplifies an optical signal directly, without the need to first convert it to an electrical signal. An optical amplifier may be thought of as a laser without an optical cavity, or one in which feedback from the cavity is suppressed...
  
   based on nanotechnology
  Nanotechnology
  Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...
  
   could replace bulky electronic versions that slow down the signal. (Nanowerk)
• The moon
  Moon
  The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
  
   was eclipsed
  February 2008 lunar eclipse
  A total lunar eclipse occurred on the evening of Wednesday, February 20, and morning of Thursday, February 21, 2008. It was visible in the eastern evening sky on February 20 for all of North and South America, and on February 21 in the predawn western sky from most of Africa and Europe.The total...
  
   by Earth
  Earth
  Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
  
   in the evening; resulting in an orange tinge. (CTV)
• The Florida
  Florida
  Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
  
   Board of Education voted four to three to add evolution
  Evolution
  Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
  
   as part of the school curriculum
  Creation and evolution in public education
  The status of creation and evolution in public education has been the subject of substantial debate in legal, political, and religious circles...
  
  , previously the curriculum specified "biological changes over time". This was accomplished after a last-minute amendment required the word "evolution" to be replaced by "scientific theory of evolution". (Reuters) (Wired)
• New species of giant sea creatures are found on the Antarctic
  Antarctic
  The Antarctic is the region around the Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica and the ice shelves, waters and island territories in the Southern Ocean situated south of the Antarctic Convergence...
  
   ocean floor by Australia's marine science
  Oceanography
  Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
  
   research vessel Aurora Australis. (ScienceDaily)

February 19, 2008 (Tuesday)

• A Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
  Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
  Originally established as Kaspare Cohn Hospital in 1902, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a non-profit, tertiary 958-bed hospital and multi-specialty academic health science centre located in Los Angeles, California, US. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over...
  
   study details a new gene therapy
  Gene therapy
  Gene therapy is the insertion, alteration, or removal of genes within an individual's cells and biological tissues to treat disease. It is a technique for correcting defective genes that are responsible for disease development...
  
   approach that teaches the immune system
  Immune system
  An immune system is a system of biological structures and processes within an organism that protects against disease by identifying and killing pathogens and tumor cells. It detects a wide variety of agents, from viruses to parasitic worms, and needs to distinguish them from the organism's own...
  
   how to kill brain cancer and establishes long term immunity. It also appears to help the brain return to normal function with no significant side-effects. (EurekAlert)
• MIT researchers have revealed biodegradable surgical tape inspired by Gecko
  Gecko
  Geckos are lizards belonging to the infraorder Gekkota, found in warm climates throughout the world. They range from 1.6 cm to 60 cm....
  
  s' feet. As it does not irritate the body it can replace surgical sutures/staples and be used to deliver drugs. (TechnologyReview)
• Toshiba
  Toshiba
  is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
  
   announces it will stop supporting HD DVD
  HD DVD
  HD DVD is a discontinued high-density optical disc format for storing data and high-definition video.Supported principally by Toshiba, HD DVD was envisioned to be the successor to the standard DVD format...
  
  . This leaves Sony
  Sony
  , commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
  
  's Blu-ray
  Blu-ray Disc
  Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
  
   as the only next generation video format. (Toshiba)
• Wikileaks
  Wikileaks
  WikiLeaks is an international self-described not-for-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Its website, launched in 2006 under The Sunshine Press organisation, claimed a database of more...
  
   domain was locked by is registrar after a Cayman Islands
  Cayman Islands
  The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
  
   bank operated by the Julius Baer Group
  Julius Baer Group
  Julius Bär Group is a Swiss banking firm which is the parent company of Bank Julius Bär, a traditional private bank based in Zurich, Switzerland. The firm dates itself back to the year 1890, when an exchange office was founded by Ludwig Hirschhorn und Theodor Grob. Joseph Michael Uhl and Julius...
  
   sought to shut the site down as it contained documents alleging illegal activities. (CBC)
• A new tool by DVD Jon
  Jon Lech Johansen
  Jon Lech Johansen , also known as DVD Jon, is a Norwegian programmer famous for his work on reverse engineering data formats....
  
   has been beta released called doubleTwist
  DoubleTwist
  doubleTwist Corporation is a digital media company founded by Monique Farantzos and Jon Lech Johansen. It is backed by Index Ventures and Northzone Ventures....
  
   which simplifies the removal of controversial digital rights management
  Digital rights management
  Digital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
  
   from media files. (CNet)

February 18, 2008 (Monday)

• Space Shuttle Atlantis
  Space Shuttle Atlantis
  The Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
  
   leaves the International Space Station
  International Space Station
  The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
  
   ahead of a planned inoperative spy satellite demolition by the U.S. military. Russia and China accuse the operation of being a weapon test. (SciAm)
• Leading video game creators begin the Game Developers Conference
  Game Developers Conference
  The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
  
   in San Francisco to discuss the success and future of video gaming, including the mobile market and new brain interfaces. (BBC)

February 15, 2008 (Friday)

• University of Michigan
  University of Michigan
  The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
  
   have developed a 300 terawatt laser
  Laser
  A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of photons. The term "laser" originated as an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation...
  
  , which is twice as powerful as the previous world record holder. This research will help cancer treatment research and at higher intensities may create matter or impact fusion
  Nuclear fusion
  Nuclear fusion is the process by which two or more atomic nuclei join together, or "fuse", to form a single heavier nucleus. This is usually accompanied by the release or absorption of large quantities of energy...
  
   research. (UMich)
• A solar system
  Solar System
  The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
  
   similar to ours is discovered 5,000 light-year
  Light-year
  A light-year, also light year or lightyear is a unit of length, equal to just under 10 trillion kilometres...
  
  s away by an international team of scientists using gravitational microlensing
  Gravitational microlensing
  Gravitational microlensing is an astronomical phenomenon due to the gravitational lens effect. It can be used to detect objects ranging from the mass of a planet to the mass of a star, regardless of the light they emit. Typically, astronomers can only detect bright objects that emit lots of light ...
  
  . (NYTimes)

February 14, 2008 (Thursday)

• Virginia Bioinformatics Institute
  Virginia Bioinformatics Institute
  The Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech is a bioinformatics, computational biology, and systems biology research facility that uses transdisciplinary approaches combining information technology, biology and medicine to interpret and apply vast amounts of biological data generated...
  
   releases a detailed map of human protein
  Protein
  Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
  
  s interacting with viral proteins. The interactions form a network that reveals possible key points for interventions against infectious disease
  Infectious disease
  Infectious diseases, also known as communicable diseases, contagious diseases or transmissible diseases comprise clinically evident illness resulting from the infection, presence and growth of pathogenic biological agents in an individual host organism...
  
  s. (EurekAlert)
• Japanese researchers demonstrate that stem cell
  Stem cell
  This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...
  
  s created from adult cells using a retrovirus
  Retrovirus
  A retrovirus is an RNA virus that is duplicated in a host cell using the reverse transcriptase enzyme to produce DNA from its RNA genome. The DNA is then incorporated into the host's genome by an integrase enzyme. The virus thereafter replicates as part of the host cell's DNA...
  
   are not cancerous. (USNews.com)

February 13, 2008 (Wednesday)

• For the first time a 3-D molecule is observed folding in real time. A piece of RNA is stretched out and then allowed to recoil. (NanoWerk)
• Researchers at Yale School of Medicine
  Yale School of Medicine
  The Yale School of Medicine at Yale University is a private medical school located in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. It was founded in 1810 as The Medical Institution of Yale College, and formally opened its doors in 1813....
  
   develop a blood test which detects early stage ovarian cancer
  Ovarian cancer
  Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
  
   with 99 percent accuracy. (ScienceDaily)
• A transitional fossil
  Transitional fossil
  A transitional fossil is any fossilized remains of a lifeform that exhibits characteristics of two distinct taxonomic groups. A transitional fossil is the fossil of an organism near the branching point where major individual lineages diverge...
  
   in bat
  Bat
  Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera "hand" and pteron "wing") whose forelimbs form webbed wings, making them the only mammals naturally capable of true and sustained flight. By contrast, other mammals said to fly, such as flying squirrels, gliding possums, and colugos, glide rather than fly,...
  
   evolution may help resolve a longstanding debate, whether echolocation
  Animal echolocation
  Echolocation, also called biosonar, is the biological sonar used by several kinds of animals.Echolocating animals emit calls out to the environment and listen to the echoes of those calls that return from various objects near them. They use these echoes to locate and identify the objects...
  
   or flight came first. The year old fossil has wing development while the ear lacks echolocation structures. (ScienceDaily)

February 12, 2008 (Tuesday)

• The new Columbus (ISS module)
  Columbus (ISS module)
  Columbus is a science laboratory that is part of the International Space Station and is the largest single contribution to the ISS made by the European Space Agency ....
  
   is activated successfully on the International Space Station
  International Space Station
  The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
  
  . (SpaceFlightNow)

February 11, 2008 (Monday)

• Researchers at the University of Delaware
  University of Delaware
  The university is organized into seven colleges:* College of Agriculture and Natural Resources* College of Arts and Sciences* Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics* College of Earth, Ocean and Environment* College of Education and Human Development...
  
   find a promising way to repair the gene
  Gene
  A gene is a molecular unit of heredity of a living organism. It is a name given to some stretches of DNA and RNA that code for a type of protein or for an RNA chain that has a function in the organism. Living beings depend on genes, as they specify all proteins and functional RNA chains...
  
   defect that causes spinal muscular atrophy
  Spinal muscular atrophy
  Spinal Muscular Atrophy is a neuromuscular disease characterized by degeneration of motor neurons, resulting in progressive muscular atrophy and weakness. The clinical spectrum of SMA ranges from early infant death to normal adult life with only mild weakness...
  
  . (UDel)
• A study found that rats given artificial sweetener
  Sugar substitute
  A sugar substitute is a food additive that duplicates the effect of sugar in taste, usually with less food energy. Some sugar substitutes are natural and some are synthetic. Those that are not natural are, in general, called artificial sweeteners....
  
   gained more weight than those on a sugar diet. Scientists speculate the body increases its metabolism
  Metabolism
  Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions that happen in the cells of living organisms to sustain life. These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments. Metabolism is usually divided into two categories...
  
   anticipating calories that never come, then requires more food to make up the shortfall. (SciAm)

February 8, 2008 (Friday)

• The first commercial vessel to use a kite
  Kite
  A kite is a tethered aircraft. The necessary lift that makes the kite wing fly is generated when air flows over and under the kite's wing, producing low pressure above the wing and high pressure below it. This deflection also generates horizontal drag along the direction of the wind...
  
   to help save fuel created by SkySails
  SkySails
  SkySails GmbH & Co. KG is a Hamburg-based company that sells equipment to propel cargo ships, large yachts and fishing vessels by the use of wind energy. The company was founded in 2001 by engineers Stephan Wrage and Thomas Meyer...
  
   finished its maiden voyage. Estimates are that the ship saved 10–15% fuel while the kite was in use, which translates into $1,000 to $1,500 in fuel costs per day. (Nature)
• San Diego scientists have successfully used stem cell
  Stem cell
  This article is about the cell type. For the medical therapy, see Stem Cell TreatmentsStem cells are biological cells found in all multicellular organisms, that can divide and differentiate into diverse specialized cell types and can self-renew to produce more stem cells...
  
  s to treat Type I diabetes in mice. (NewScientist)

February 7, 2008 (Thursday)

• Space Shuttle Atlantis
  Space Shuttle Atlantis
  The Space Shuttle Atlantis is a retired Space Shuttle orbiter in the Space Shuttle fleet belonging to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration , the spaceflight and space exploration agency of the United States...
  
   launched successfully (STS-122
  STS-122
  STS-122 was a NASA Space Shuttle mission to the International Space Station , flown by the Space Shuttle Atlantis. STS-122 marked the 24th shuttle mission to the ISS, and the 121st space shuttle flight since STS-1....
  
  ) on route to the International Space Station
  International Space Station
  The International Space Station is a habitable, artificial satellite in low Earth orbit. The ISS follows the Salyut, Almaz, Cosmos, Skylab, and Mir space stations, as the 11th space station launched, not including the Genesis I and II prototypes...
  
   to install the European science laboratory named "Columbus
  Columbus (ISS module)
  Columbus is a science laboratory that is part of the International Space Station and is the largest single contribution to the ISS made by the European Space Agency ....
  
  ". (IBTimes)
• One 2008 submarine cable disruption
  2008 submarine cable disruption
  2008 submarine cable disruption refers to three separate incidents of major damage to submarine optical cables. The first incident caused damage involving up to five high-speed Internet submarine communications cables in the Mediterranean Sea and Middle East from 23 January to 4 February 2008,...
  
   is explained by abandoned boat anchor, while four other cuts remain unexplained. Speculation of sabotage and conspiracy theories are surfacing. (Inquirer)
• A new knee device is demonstrated that can generate electricity efficiently from walking with minimal effort. The system acquires energy from deceleration similar to how hybrid-electric cars regain energy from regenerative braking
  Regenerative brake
  A regenerative brake is an energy recovery mechanism which slows a vehicle or object down by converting its kinetic energy into another form, which can be either used immediately or stored until needed...
  
  . (CBC)
• New studies in the journal Science
  Science (journal)
  Science is the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and is one of the world's top scientific journals....
  
  conclude Biofuel
  Biofuel
  Biofuel is a type of fuel whose energy is derived from biological carbon fixation. Biofuels include fuels derived from biomass conversion, as well as solid biomass, liquid fuels and various biogases...
  
  s are not beneficial to climate change
  Climate change
  Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
  
  , as they require increased land use to grow crops and unintentionally increases the cost of food. (SciAm)

February 5, 2008 (Tuesday)

• Compound PTC124
  PTC124
  Ataluren, formerly known as PTC124, is a novel small-molecular agent designed to make ribosomes become less sensitive to, or possibly ignore premature stop codons. This may be particularly beneficial in genetic disorders where the mRNA contains a mutation causing premature stop codon or nonsense...
  
   also proves effective against cystic fibrosis
  Cystic fibrosis
  Cystic fibrosis is a recessive genetic disease affecting most critically the lungs, and also the pancreas, liver, and intestine...
  
  . As PTC124 appears to suppress "nonsense mutation
  Nonsense mutation
  In genetics, a nonsense mutation is a point mutation in a sequence of DNA that results in a premature stop codon, or a nonsense codon in the transcribed mRNA, and in a truncated, incomplete, and usually nonfunctional protein product. It differs from a missense mutation, which is a point mutation...
  
  s" it may help in treating more than 2,400 genetic disease
  Genetic disorder
  A genetic disorder is an illness caused by abnormalities in genes or chromosomes, especially a condition that is present from before birth. Most genetic disorders are quite rare and affect one person in every several thousands or millions....
  
  s. (PhysOrg)
• British scientists use a healthy mitochondrion
  Mitochondrion
  In cell biology, a mitochondrion is a membrane-enclosed organelle found in most eukaryotic cells. These organelles range from 0.5 to 1.0 micrometers in diameter...
  
   from a second woman to create human embryos containing DNA
  DNA
  Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
  
   from two women and one man. This may prevent conditions including epilepsy
  Epilepsy
  Epilepsy is a common chronic neurological disorder characterized by seizures. These seizures are transient signs and/or symptoms of abnormal, excessive or hypersynchronous neuronal activity in the brain.About 50 million people worldwide have epilepsy, and nearly two out of every three new cases...
  
  , diabetes and heart failure. (PhysOrg)

February 4, 2008 (Monday)

• India and Egypt
  Egypt
  Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
  
   experience Internet
  Internet
  The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
  
   disruption when a second middle-eastern submarine cable (SEA-ME-WE 4) was cut. This compounds congestion caused by a Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe
  Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe
  Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe is a 28,000-kilometer-long submarine communications cable containing optical fiber that connects the United Kingdom, Japan, and many places in between. The cable is operated by India's Flag Telecom, a fully owned subsidiary of Reliance Communications. The system...
  
   break on January 30. (BBC)
• French and Spanish researchers have identified 582 genes which is new evidence of recent evolution in humans, which allows survival in new habitats and protects against common diseases. (ScienceNow)
• Intel creates the first microchip
  Integrated circuit
  An integrated circuit or monolithic integrated circuit is an electronic circuit manufactured by the patterned diffusion of trace elements into the surface of a thin substrate of semiconductor material...
  
  , known as Tukwila
  Tukwila (processor)
  Tukwila is the code-name for the generation of Intel's Itanium processor family following Itanium 2 and Montecito. It was released on 8 February 2010 as the Itanium 9300 Series. While its features have not been publicly disclosed in detail, it utilizes both multiple processor cores and SMT...
  
  , that contains more than two billion transistor
  Transistor
  A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power. It is composed of a semiconductor material with at least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current...
  
  s. (PhysOrg)
• Researchers at MIT and Texas Instruments
  Texas Instruments
  Texas Instruments Inc. , widely known as TI, is an American company based in Dallas, Texas, United States, which develops and commercializes semiconductor and computer technology...
  
   create a new chip design for portable electronics
  Electronics
  Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...
  
   which could be up to 10 times more energy-efficient. (PhysOrg)
• A doubling of storage capacity for phase-change memory is announced by Intel. This kind of memory combines the power efficiency of flash memory
  Flash memory
  Flash memory is a non-volatile computer storage chip that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. It was developed from EEPROM and must be erased in fairly large blocks before these can be rewritten with new data...
  
   with the speed of random-access memory
  Random-access memory
  Random access memory is a form of computer data storage. Today, it takes the form of integrated circuits that allow stored data to be accessed in any order with a worst case performance of constant time. Strictly speaking, modern types of DRAM are therefore not random access, as data is read in...
  
  . (TechnologyReview)

February 3, 2008 (Sunday)

• A new technique for reading a single strand of DNA
  DNA
  Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
  
   and RNA
  RNA
  Ribonucleic acid , or RNA, is one of the three major macromolecules that are essential for all known forms of life....
  
   which does not require chemical agents or detours has been developed by scientists at the Institute for Analytical Sciences (Dortmund
  Dortmund
  Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
  
  ). (ScienceDaily)

February 1, 2008 (Friday)

• Researchers at Stanford University
  Stanford University
  The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
  
   found in mice trials that carbon nanotube
  Carbon nanotube
  Carbon nanotubes are allotropes of carbon with a cylindrical nanostructure. Nanotubes have been constructed with length-to-diameter ratio of up to 132,000,000:1, significantly larger than for any other material...
  
  s leave the body as waste products; answering toxicity concerns that they may accumulate in vital organs. (Stanford)