Tech

Researchers from Cardiff University are opening up a new way of using hydrocarbon feedstocks to make a range of valuable products.

Hydrocarbons are an extremely important energy resource but, although widely available from fossil fuels, are extremely difficult to activate and require very high temperatures in current industrial processes.

For the first time, the Cardiff study has shown that the primary carbon-hydrogen bonds in toluene, a hydrocarbon widely used as an industrial material, can be activated selectively at low temperatures.

BATON ROUGE – We live in a world almost completely dependent upon machinery. Since the creation of the simple wheel, humans have found ways to increase quality of life and advance scientific knowledge using these devices. Though the prevalence of machinery has allowed us to build bigger, travel faster and create more quickly with complexity increasing as science advances, our dependence upon them has limitations. Everything that moves can and will break, especially metals under strain. And when they fail, the consequences can be catastrophic.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - California policies aimed at reducing electricity use and curbing greenhouse gas emissions have the unintended consequence of making new plug-in hybrid vehicles uneconomical, according to a Purdue University economist.

(Garrison, NY) Extra large private hospital rooms with plenty of natural light and artwork may seem like unaffordable luxuries, but new research shows that these and other architecture and design features can improve patient care and in the long run reduce health care expenses. They are among the elements of the "Fable hospital," an ideal health care facility as conceived and analyzed by leaders in health care and design. Elements of the Fable hospital are being adopted on the ground today, with the imperative to improve quality and value.

COLUMBIA, Mo. – U.S. agricultural practices create 58 percent of nitrous oxide in the world, which is the third most prevalent greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Scientists believe nitrous oxide contributes to global warming about 300 times more than carbon dioxide.

As H1N1 'Swine Flu' returns to the national headlines a new research paper reveals the key lessons about the origins of the 2009 pandemic. The paper, published today in BioEssays, reveals how the pandemic challenges the traditional understanding of 'antigenic shift' , given that the virus emerged from an existing influenza subtype.

Scientists are reporting that so-called "thirdhand smoke" — the invisible remains of cigarette smoke that deposits on carpeting, clothing, furniture and other surfaces — may be even more of a health hazard than previously believed. The study, published in ACS' journal, Environmental Science & Technology, extends the known health risks of tobacco among people who do not smoke but encounter the smoke exhaled by smokers or released by smoldering cigarette butts.

Scientists are reporting the development of a new, ultra-light form of "frozen smoke" — renowned as the world's lightest solid material — with amazing strength and an incredibly large surface area. The new so-called "multiwalled carbon nanotube (MCNT) aerogel" could be used in sensors to detect pollutants and toxic substances, chemical reactors, and electronics components. A report about the material appears in ACS Nano, a monthly journal.

Scientists dream of developing a real-world version of the Pied Piper's magic flute — new poisons that pose no threat to people, pets or wildlife, while specifically targeting rats, those germ-laden creatures that outnumber humans 6 to 1 in some urban areas. An article in the current edition of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine, details some of the steps toward that goal.

New York, NY, January 12, 2011 – Coronary syndromes vary in severity, ranging from unstable angina, non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI), to ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), the most severe diagnosis. Little data exist about changing trends in acute myocardial infarction and whether death rates are increasing or decreasing. In a study published in the January 2011 issue of The American Journal of Medicine, investigators found that STEMI rates decreased and one-year post-discharge death rates decreased in NSTEMI and STEMI patients.

Humans are notoriously bad at predicting their future happiness. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, suggests that part of the reason for these mispredictions lies in failing to recognize the key role played by one's own personality when determining future emotional reactions.

Lasers have revolutionized the communications and medical industries. They focus light to zap tumors and send digital TV signals and telephone communications around the world.

But the physical length of an ordinary laser cannot be less than one half of the wavelength of its light, which limits its application in many industries. Now the Spaser, a new invention developed in part by Tel Aviv University, can be as small as needed to fuel nano-technologies of the future.

A simple technique to make a common virus-killing material significantly more effective is a breakthrough from the Rice University labs of Andrew Barron and Qilin Li.

Rather than trying to turn the process into profit, the researchers have put it into the public domain. They hope wide adoption will save time, money and perhaps even lives.

The drugs include traditional non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) as well as new generation anti-inflammatory drugs, known as COX-2 inhibitors.

The researchers say that doctors and patients need to be aware that prescription of any anti-inflammatory drug needs to take cardiovascular risk into account.

Researchers at North Carolina State University have created the first coils of silicon nanowire on a substrate that can be stretched to more than double their original length, moving us closer to incorporating stretchable electronic devices into clothing, implantable health-monitoring devices, and a host of other applications.