Tech

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) -- One of the greatest challenges in the evolution of electronics has been to reduce power consumption during transistor switching operation. In a study recently reported in Nature, engineers at University of California, Santa Barbara, in collaboration with Rice University, have demonstrated a new transistor that switches at only 0.1 volts and reduces power dissipation by over 90% compared to state-of-the-art silicon transistors (MOSFETs).

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) -- One of the greatest challenges in the evolution of electronics has been to reduce power consumption during transistor switching operation. In a study recently reported in Nature, engineers at University of California, Santa Barbara, in collaboration with Rice University, have demonstrated a new transistor that switches at only 0.1 volts and reduces power dissipation by over 90% compared to state-of-the-art silicon transistors (MOSFETs).

This technology is significant as it allows the thermally durable Li-ion battery to be used in a wider variety of applications, such as large-scale industrial machines with motors, and medical machines which need to be heated for autoclave sterilization. Since this technology does not require the cooling system common in conventional Li-ion batteries, it is expected to lead to further developments of compact battery systems and reduce overall costs.

National Science Foundation, Welch Foundation, American Chemical Society, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Rice University's Smalley-Curl Institute

HOUSTON -- (Dec. 4, 2015) -- A new method for building "drawbridges" between metal nanoparticles may allow electronics makers to build full-color displays using light-scattering nanoparticles that are similar to the gold materials that medieval artisans used to create red stained-glass.

What happens when "Tom Hanks," "Tom Cruise" and "Kesha" sit around a table? When the talkers are actually teens using researcher-requested pseudonyms they chose to anonymously discuss their driving habits, the results are surprising, maybe even more so than if the real celebrities got together.

Rubbish dumped at sea off Townsville will end up on the popular Mission Beach holiday spot, while Cairns' marine trash goes straight to the exclusive Port Douglas resort -- according to new computer modelling by a James Cook University scientist.

JCU's Kay Critchell fed local wind and tide data into the state-of-the-art SLIM modelling system. She then tracked drift patterns for an average-sized plastic water bottle that found its way into Townsville's Ross River or Cairns' Trinity Inlet, or was dumped at sea along the Great Barrier Reef.

Ethanol, which is produced from corn, is commonly-used as an additive in engine fuel as a way to reduce harmful emissions and scale back U.S. reliance on foreign oil. But since ethanol is an oxygenated fuel, its use results in a lower energy output, as well as increased damage to engines via corrosion.

But now a research team, led by William Jones at the University of Rochester, has developed a series of reactions that results in the selective conversion of ethanol to butanol, without producing unwanted byproducts.

Alexandria, VA - A new study from geoscience researchers has important implications for studies of Mesoamerica and North America prior to the arrival of European settlers. Using isotope geochemistry, scientists at Pennsylvania's Dickenson College and the University of Arizona are trying to identify if turquoise mineral specimens record the signature of their parent ore deposits.

This image shows the speed of fast plasma outflows produced by the flare. The termination shock is shown as a transition layer where the colors change abruptly from red/yellow to blue/green. At bottom is the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, which captured the termination shock in action using radio observations. Credit: SDO/AIA data is from NASA. VLA image courtesy of NRAO/AUI. Image prepared by Chen, Jibben, and Samra.

Canine mediated rabies is endemic in Tanzania despite the fact that the disease can be prevented entirely by mass dog vaccination. Since 2003 the Serengeti Health Initiative has been carrying out rabies vaccination campaigns that aim to achieve the 70% coverage required in order to eliminate rabies. The research team, a partnership among the Nelson Mandela African Institution of Science and Technology, the Paul G.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers are seeing the light, but in an altogether different way. And how they are doing it just might be the semiconductor industry's ticket for extending its use of optical microscopes to measure computer chip features that are approaching 10 nanometers, tiny fractions of the wavelength of light.

Scientists monitoring the spread of radiation in the ocean from the Fukushima nuclear accident report finding an increased number of sites off the US West Coast showing signs of contamination from Fukushima. This includes the highest detected level to date from a sample collected about 1,600 miles west of San Francisco.

Nonmedical use of prescription opioids (a.k.a.: pain-killers, narcotics) such as Vicodin, Percocet, and Oxycontin has become increasingly problematic in recent years with increases nation-wide in overdoses, hospital treatment admissions, and deaths. Use also appears to be contributing to heroin initiation, which has increased in recent years, as the demographics of users are shifting. Those previously at low risk -- women, whites, and individuals of higher income -- are now using at unprecedented rates.

HOUSTON - (Dec. 3, 2015) - Rice University researchers who pioneered the development of laser-induced graphene have configured their discovery into flexible, solid-state microsupercapacitors that rival the best available for energy storage and delivery.

The devices developed in the lab of Rice chemist James Tour are geared toward electronics and apparel. They are the subject of a new paper in the journal Advanced Materials.

Amsterdam, December 3, 2015 - Graphene oxide could be used to make super strong dental fillings that don't corrode, according to a new study published in Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces.

Research suggests we chew around 800 times in an average meal; that's almost a million times a year. We put our teeth under huge strain, and often require fillings to repair them. Fillings are typically made of a mixture of metals, such as copper, mercury, silver and tin, or composites of powdered glass and ceramic.