Tech

Ferrara/Leipzig. New methods might allow polluted sites to be investigated and monitored long term at significantly reduced costs. Authorities and those who have to remediate polluted sites in Europe might therefore be able to save costs and use these to treat other areas. This is the conclusion of the EU research project ModelPROBE, which was coordinated by the UFZ. The results, with which the scientists aimed to lower the workload of authorities and consultants, include a handbook detailing the methods for characterising contaminated sites and a freely-accessible e-learning course.

Daily tasks

The second robot developed by the Biomedical Neuroengineering Group is Robotherapist 3D, whose worldwide patent has been granted to Instead Technologies. This new machine helps patients to perform movements in all positions and directions. In addition, it has a virtual reality system so that people can start to carry out everyday tasks again, such as lifting a glass of water to their mouth.

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed a new technique that allows users to better determine the amount of charge remaining in a battery in real time. That's good news for electric vehicle drivers, since it gives them a better idea of when their car may run out of juice.

To understand the effects of continuous computerized surveillance on individuals, a Finnish research group instrumented ten Finnish households with video cameras, microphones, and logging software for personal computers, wireless networks, smartphones, TVs, and DVDs. The twelve participants filled monthly questionnaires to report on stress levels and were interviewed at six and twelve months. The study was carried out by Helsinki Institute for Information Technology HIIT, a joint research institute of Aalto University and the University of Helsinki, Finland.

A tabletop system where users can come together and view shared content will be unveiled today [Tuesday 9 October]. A team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, have developed the system aimed at supporting mixed-focus collaborative tasks.

Researchers from the University's Department of Computer Science will present PiVOT (personalised view-overlays for tabletops) at the 25th ACM UIST 2012, a symposium for innovations in the software and technology of human-computer interfaces.

OAK BROOK, Ill. – With the results of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), researchers say they are closer to finding an imaging technique that can identify thickening of the coronary artery wall, an early stage of coronary heart disease (CAD). The study is published online in the journal Radiology.

According to the authors of a new editorial being published early online in Annals of Internal Medicine, the new over-the-counter, home-based HIV test, OraQuick, is not likely to lower the barriers to care or reduce HIV transmission.

After all, it is used after the fact and the risky behavior has already occurred. Plus, with its relatively high cost, the test is likely only to attract affluent persons at low risk for infection, persons with very recent high-risk exposures, or those with diagnosed HIV seeking to find out if treatment has reversed their seropositivity.

Expanding production of palm oil, a common ingredient in processed foods, soaps and personal care products, is driving rainforest destruction and massive carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new study led by researchers at Stanford and Yale universities.

The study, published online Oct. 7 in the journal Nature Climate Change, shows that deforestation for the development of oil palm plantations in Indonesian Borneo is becoming a globally significant source of carbon dioxide emissions.

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are core components in every mobile phone, television and computer. PCBs can be thought of as acting like a nervous system, forming a network that links the microchips mounted on the board and supplies them with power. One of the most important methods of fabricating large PCBs involves the precision electroplating of copper onto the PCB panel immersed in an acidic electrolyte bath. However, some of the titanium parts used in the electroplating process suffer substantial wear within a short space of time. Replacing these parts generates significant costs.

An international team of researchers has found at the free electron laser FLASH a surprising effect that leads in ferromagnetic materials to a spatially varying magnetization manipulation on an ultrafast timescale. This effect could be the key to further miniaturization and performance increase of magnetic data storage devices. From Mainz, the group of Professor Dr. Mathias Kläui from the Institute of Physics at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz and in particular Felix Büttner, a member of the Graduate School of Excellence "Materials Science in Mainz", were involved.

An engine without oil will not survive for very long. Pistons need plenty of lubricant in order to be able to move within the cylindrical sleeves in the engine block. Two things are known to raise the resultant level of friction. The first is attributed to distortion of the cylindrical bore hole when the cylinder head is attached, which is known as static distortion. The second occurs when the engine is running and temperatures warp the bore hole. The extent of this thermal distortion depends on prevailing engine temperatures and the specific engine model.

Deep below the silicon surface, the SPRIE method produces regular structures in the micrometer range that refract light. (Photo: KIT/CFN)

The tiny pieces of rock – at 50-100 micrometers smaller than a human hair – have been captured from asteroid Itokawa by the Japanese mission Hayabusa. They were carefully unpacked by experts at the University's School of Earth, Atmospheric and Environmental Sciences.

It is the first time samples from an asteroid have been returned to Earth. Only about 70 samples have been released for international analysis – seven of these are being studied at the University.

Controlling "mixing" between acceptor and donor layers, or domains, in polymer-based solar cells could increase their efficiency, according to a team of researchers that included physicists from North Carolina State University. Their findings shed light on the inner workings of these solar cells, and could lead to further improvements in efficiency.

When a storm knocks out power, among the first questions to be answered are how many people are affected and when electricity will be restored. Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Energy Awareness and Resiliency Standardized Services application, or EARSS, uses publicly available data and can help by showing grid status in real time.