Engineer's findings could help hybrid, electric cars keep their cool

Tweet

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Understanding precisely how fluid boils in tiny "microchannels" has led to formulas and models that will help engineers design systems to cool high-power electronics in electric and hybrid cars, aircraft, computers and other devices.

Allowing a liquid to boil in cooling systems dramatically increases how much heat can be removed, compared to simply heating a liquid to below its boiling point, said Suresh Garimella, the R. Eugene and Susie E. Goodson Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University.

DRIVSCO computer system enables cars to learn from their drivers

Tweet

Scientists from six European countries, including Spain, have developed a new computer system so called DRIVSCO that allows vehicles to learn from the behaviour of their drivers at the wheel, in such a way that they can detect if a driver presents an "unusual behaviour" in a curve or an obstacle on the road and generates signals of alarm which warn him on time to react.

New multi-use device can shed light on oxygen intake

Tweet

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A fiber-optic sensor created by a team of Purdue University researchers that is capable of measuring oxygen intake rates could have broad applications ranging from plant root development to assessing the effectiveness of chemotherapy drugs.

Transhumance helps vulture conservation

Tweet

Researchers from the University of Segovia and the University of León have shown for the first time the close space-time relationship between the presence of the griffon vulture and transhumant sheep farming in mountain passes. Transhumance has fallen in some parts of Spain by up to 80% over the past four years. The scientists say that traditional livestock farming practices are crucial for the preservation of mountain ecosystems.

Mindful meditation, shared dialogues reduce physician burnout

Tweet

Training in mindfulness meditation and communication can alleviate the psychological distress and burnout experienced by many physicians and can improve their well-being, University of Rochester Medical Center researchers report in today's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

The training also can expand a physician's capacity to relate to patients and enhance patient-centered care, according to the researchers, who were led by Michael S. Krasner, M.D., associate professor of Clinical Medicine.

A splash of graphene improves battery materials

Tweet

Web-based innovation improves, eases agricultural terrace design

Tweet

St. Joseph, Michigan — A new internet-based tool for designing agricultural terraces promises to reduce the considerable labor involved and to optimize design by allowing rapid development of alternative layouts.

New computing innovations could lead to better crops and pesticides, say researchers

Tweet

A new computing tool that could help scientists predict how plants will react to different environmental conditions in order to create better crops, such as tastier and longer lasting tomatoes, is being developed by researchers.

The tool will form part of a new £1.7 million Syngenta University Centre at Imperial College London, announced today, which will see researchers from Imperial and Syngenta working together to improve agricultural products.

A trillion triangles

Tweet

September 22, 2009 – Mathematicians from North America, Europe, Australia, and South America have resolved the first one trillion cases of an ancient mathematics problem. The advance was made possible by a clever technique for multiplying large numbers. The numbers involved are so enormous that if their digits were written out by hand they would stretch to the moon and back. The biggest challenge was that these numbers could not even fit into the main memory of the available computers, so the researchers had to make extensive use of the computers' hard drives.

New device could more effectively alleviate menstrual cramp pain

Tweet

While most women experience minor pain during menstruation, for others, the pain can be severe enough to interfere with everyday activities and require medication. New research to be presented at the 2009 American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting and Exposition will reveal initial findings of safety surrounding a new device that may more effectively treat menstrual pain.