Lifeboat Foundation

Cool; and at −273.16°C in fact.

Nothing can be chilled below absolute zero, or −273.15°C, because at this temperature all molecular motion stops completely. Per Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle the forces of real particle velocities will always be above zero. It’s a fundamental limit that can’t seem to be broken, and that’s fine, but what bothers scientists, however, are other limits that keep them from cooling things near absolute zero.

Based on a study of the optical properties of novel ultrathin semiconductors, researchers of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) in Munich have developed a method for rapid and efficient characterization of these materials.

Chemical compounds based on elements that belong to the so-called transition metals can be processed to yield atomically thin two-dimensional crystals consisting of a monolayer of the composite in question. The resulting materials are semiconductors with surprising optical properties. In cooperation with American colleagues, a team of LMU physicists led by Alexander Högele has now explored the properties of thin-film semiconductors made up of transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs).

The researchers report their findings in the journal Nature Nanotechnology (“Opto-valleytronic imaging of atomically thin semiconductors”).

Nice.

In research that could one day lead to advances against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, University of Michigan engineering researchers have demonstrated a technique for precisely measuring the properties of individual protein molecules floating in a liquid.

Proteins are essential to the function of every cell. Measuring their properties in blood and other body fluids could unlock valuable information, as the molecules are a vital building block in the body. The body manufactures them in a variety of complex shapes that can transmit messages between cells, carry oxygen and perform other important functions.

Continue reading “‘5-D protein fingerprinting’ with nanopores could give insights into Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s” »

Attention all seaweed farmers! US DoE and DARPA wants you.

Did you know that the amount of commercially produced seaweed almost hit the mark of 25 million metric tons last year? China and Indonesia dominate the global seaweed-to-food market, and now the Department of Energy has been casting a hungry eye on the potential for the US to get in on the action, with a particular focus on converting seaweed to biofuel and other high value products.

Of course, there is a problem. Growing seaweed — aka macroalgae — for food is one thing. The algae-to-energy cycle is quite another thing entirely. That’s why the Energy Department has called upon its cutting edge funding division, ARPA-E, to put out a call for the super macroalgae farmer of the future.

Continue reading “Energy Dept. Seeks A Few Good (Really, Really Good) Seaweed Farmers” »

More smart bullet news; and this is not a fake news flash.

THE MIL & AERO COMMENTARY, 17 Jan. 2017. Military machine guns, with minor modifications, have remained essentially the same since World War I. They’re designed to spray out a hail of metal bullets in one general direction to shred people, supplies, command centers, and lightly armored vehicles. Smart bullets rarely have been envisioned. Machine guns strictly represent a curtain of firepower in one direction; it doesn’t much matter that most of the bullets miss their targets, as long as a few manage to hit home.

It was not so long ago that sequencing even tiny snippets of DNA was a costly, cumbersome process that required access to a state-the-art lab. Today, we are inching close to putting a DNA sequencer in every pocket.

A small study conducted by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the Kresge Eye Institute at Wayne State University in Detroit, and the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute in India was published in the journal Ophthalmology. The research included 20 patients who had surgery for Terson syndrome, a specific type of hemorrhage caused mostly by traumatic injury, such as vehicular collisions. Some of the patients experienced this hemorrhaging in both eyes, thus allowing for the study of 28 eyes.

The procedure used to restore sight in these patients is known as a vitrectomy. The surgery removes the jellylike tissue behind the lens of the eye and replaces it with a saline solution. The patients were split into groups who had the surgery within three months of the hemorrhage and those who received it after the three month mark.

— longer synthetic DNA accelerates customer discoveries —

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. – January 10, 2017 – Twist Bioscience, a company accelerating science and innovation through rapid, high-quality DNA synthesis on silicon, today announced that it is now shipping genes up to 3,200 base pairs (3.2 kilobase or kB) in length to Ginkgo Bioworks under their existing supply agreement.

“Twist Bioscience continues to deliver record volumes of the highest-quality DNA to advance our organism engineering efforts, meeting or exceeding our aggressive timelines,” said Jason Kelly, CEO and co-founder of Ginkgo Bioworks. “With the availability of synthetic genes up to 3.2kB from Twist, we are able to expedite the rapid prototyping of organism designs to generate cosmetics, nutritional ingredients, flavors, fragrances and other important ingredients.”

Continue reading “Twist Bioscience Supplying 3.2kB Genes to Ginkgo Bioworks” »

Within the next fifty years, scientists at BAE Systems believe that battlefield commanders could deploy a new type of directed energy laser and lens system, called a Laser Developed Atmospheric Lens which is capable of enhancing commanders’ ability to observe adversaries’ activities over much greater distances than existing sensors.

At the same time, the lens could be used as a form of ‘deflector shield’ to protect friendly aircraft, ships, land vehicles and troops from incoming attacks by high power laser weapons that could also become a reality in the same time period.

Continue reading “Directed energy atmospheric lens could revolutionise future battlefields” »