2017年1月30日 星期一

Engineers Create Artificial Skin That "Feels" Temperature Changes

A team of engineers and scientists at Caltech and ETH Zürich have developed an artificial skin capable of detecting temperature changes that could one day be grafted onto prosthetic limbs or applied to first-aid bandages to alert health professionals of infection in wounds.

Newly developed flexible artificial skin senses changes in temperature much the same way pit vipers sense nearby prey.
CALTECH.EDU

Heat from Earth’s core could be underlying force in plate tectonics

Prof. David B. Rowley predicts that "textbooks will need to be rewritten" in light of his latest discovery:

New research shows plate dynamics are driven significantly by the additional force of heat drawn from the Earth’s core.
NEWS.UCHICAGO.EDU

2017年1月29日 星期日

The Universe in a Cup of Coffee

When you pour a cup of hot coffee, there’s a surprising amount of chemistry and physics brewing in your mug.

You think it's just a beverage, but it's a whole lot more
BLOGS.SCIENTIFICAMERICAN.COM|由 LYDIA CHAIN 上傳

2017年1月26日 星期四

New Prospects for Growing Human Organs in Animals




New Prospects for Growing Human Organs in Animals

By NICHOLAS WADE

Human stem cells could be implanted in an early pig embryo, making a chimera with human organs suitable for transplant.

英國Northumbria 大學做實驗 咖啡因劑量多100倍 兩名學生險致命 被法庭判罰40萬英鎊



Kuohsun Shih http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-38744307



英國大學做實驗點錯小數點 險些出人命

  • 2017年 1月 25日

Northumbria University圖片版權GOOGLE
Image caption英國諾桑比亞大學有3萬多名學生,每年預算約2.5億英鎊

位於英格蘭東北部城市紐卡斯爾的諾桑比亞大學由於在一項實驗中對兩名學生使用了高達原設計劑量100倍的咖啡因,險些造成生命損失,被法庭判罰40萬英鎊。
諾桑比亞大學向法庭表示,他們感到「深刻的和切實的懊悔」。
兩名受害者是體育運動學學生羅塞塔(Alex Rossetta)和帕金(Luke Parkin),他們在實驗中攝入的咖啡因相當於每人喝了300杯咖啡。
兩人出現嚴重身體反應,被送往醫院接受重症監護。
檢察官法勒(Adam Farrer)說,這樣的過量完全可能導致死亡。
辯護律師史密斯(Peter Smith)表示,大學希望強調,他們對學生和員工的安危利益極為關切。
事件發生在2015年3月,兩位學生作為志願者參加了一項測試咖啡因對運動狀況影響的實驗。
檢察官法勒告訴法庭,實驗設計的咖啡因用量是0.3克,但實際使用了30克。
他說,在過去的案例中,曾經有過18克咖啡因致死人命的記錄。
他還說,這所大學在過去的實驗中使用藥片,現在改用藥粉,而有關人員缺乏經驗,能力不足,出了差錯。
這位檢察官指責大學沒有採取措施,確保工作人員掌握操作。
有關用藥劑量的計算是用手機計算得到的,小數點點錯了位置,也沒有風險評估作保障。
法庭了解到,兩位學生的身體現在都得到了恢復,儘管羅塞塔還有短期記憶缺失的症狀出現。

2017年1月25日 星期三

Artificial intelligence used to identify skin cancer


A deep learning algorithm created by researchers in the Stanford Artificial Intelligence Laboratory performed as well as 21 board-certified dermatologists in picking out deadly skin lesions.

In hopes of creating better access to medical care, Stanford researchers…
NEWS.STANFORD.EDU|由 STANFORD UNIVERSITY 上傳

2017年1月22日 星期日

Hollywood’s Extreme Close-Up

Hollywood’s Extreme Close-Up 

New technology has helped make close-ups a common tool for filmmakers, changing how movies look, actors perform and stories unfold.

2017年1月17日 星期二

Caffeine may counter age-related inflammation

Stanford School of Medicine study has revealed a plausible mechanism for the well-known correlation between caffeine consumption and longevity.

A chronic inflammatory process that occurs in some, but not all, older people may trigger cardiovascular problems, a new Stanford study shows. Part of the solution might be found in a cup of coffee.
MED.STANFORD.EDU

This Choral Performance Takes You to an Ancient Hagia Sophia

A team of Stanford researchers just brought the Hagia Sophia out of Istanbul — and back in time.

A team of Stanford researchers and the vocal ensemble Cappella Romana…
WQXR.ORG

2017年1月11日 星期三

澳洲一群17歲中學生複製艾藥有效成分 證明抗價格虛高

孩子們也是蠻拼的!澳大利亞一群17歲中學生成功復制了一種能夠拯救生命的艾滋病藥物的有效成分,而且成本僅為20美元。在美國,同等重量的有效成分售價可以達到11萬美元。

The "Paperfuge" That Could Revolutionize Field Medicine


The "Paperfuge" That Could Revolutionize Field Medicine
-fuge  COMBINING FORM
  • Expelling or dispelling either a specified thing or in a specified way:

COMBINING FORM

  • Expelling or dispelling either a specified thing or in a specified way:
    ‘vermifuge’
    ‘centrifuge’

-fuge

COMBINING FORM

  • Expelling or dispelling either a specified thing or in a specified way:
    ‘vermifuge’
    ‘centrifuge’

Origin

From modern Latin -fugus, from Latin fugare cause to flee.
centrifuge

[名]遠心(分離)機.━━[動](他)…を遠心(分離)機で分離する.





-fuge



COMBINING FORM


Expelling or dispelling either a specified thing or in a specified way:
‘vermifuge’

‘centrifuge’
Origin


From modern Latin -fugus, from Latin fugare cause to flee.

2017年1月10日 星期二

A 100-Drone Swarm, Dropped from Jets, Plans Its Own Moves

A 100-Drone Swarm, Dropped from Jets, Plans Its Own Moves

Once launched, the swarm can decide for itself how best to execute a mission.

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/603337/a-100-drone-swarm-dropped-from-jets-plans-its-own-moves/



Washington Post report last year explained that they had been developed as part of a $20 million Pentagon program to augment the current fleet of military drones. It’s hoped that the small aircraft, which weigh around a pound each and are relatively inexpensive because they’re made from off-the-shelf components, could be dropped by jets to perform missions that would usually require much larger drones, like the Reaper.
Clearly, they’re well on the way to being that useful. Now the Pentagon is working with its own Silicon Valley-style innovation organization, the Defense Innovation Unit Experimental, to build fleets of the micro-drones.

2017年1月8日 星期日

Quantum Computers Ready to Leap Out of the Lab in 2017. Google is closing in on a shortcut to a practical quantum computer. Computers set for quantum leap as devices tap into speed of light

The quantum-computing start-up scene is heating up.
Google, Microsoft and a host of labs and start-ups are racing to turn scientific curiosities into working machines
SCIENTIFICAMERICAN.COM|由 DAVIDE CASTELVECCHI,NATURE MAGAZINE 上傳

2016.6.11
A quantum computing shortcut seems to have emerged.


Quantum computers could be closer than we thought, thanks to new steps…
TECHNOLOGYREVIEW.COM



2010.9.17   “量子计算机”时代即将来临
Computers set for quantum leap as devices tap into speed of light



A new photonic chip that works on light rather than electricity has been built by an international research team, paving the way for the production of ultra-fast quantum computers with capabilities far beyond today’s devices. 一个国际研究团队已经研制成功一种利用光(而不是电)工作的新的光子芯片,从而为制造 性能远超过当前设备的超快量子计算机铺平了道路。
Future quantum computers will, for example, be able to pull important information out of the biggest databases almost instantaneously. As the amount of electronic data stored worldwide grows exponentially, the technology will make it easier for people to search with precision for they want. 例如,未来的量子计算机几乎在瞬间就能从最大的数据库中找出重要信息。随着全球存储的 电子数据呈指数级增长,该技术将让人们更轻易地精确搜寻自己想要的信息。
An early application will be to investigate and design complex molecules, such as new drugs and other materials, that cannot be simulated with ordinary computers. More general consumer applications should follow. 这种计算机将首先运用于研究和设计用普通电脑无法模拟的复杂分子,比如新药和其它材 料。随后就应该能运用于更普通的消费产品上。
Jeremy O’Brien, director of the UK’s Centre for Quantum Photonics, who led the project, said many people in the field had believed a functional quantum computer would not be a reality for at least 25 years. 领导该项目的英国量子光子学中心(Centre for Quantum Photonics)主任杰里米•奥布莱恩(Jeremy O’Brien)表示,该领域的许多人此前认为,至少在25年内不会出现实用性的量子计算机。
“However, we can say with real confidence that, using our new technique, a quantum computer could, within five years, be performing calculations that are outside the capabilities of conventional computers,” he told the British Science Festival, as he presented the research. “然而,现在我们可以满怀信心地表示,通过运用我们的新技术,5年内量子计算机就可以 进行超出传统电脑能力范围的运算,”奥布莱恩在英国科学节(British Science Festival)上展示其研究成果时表示:
The breakthrough, published on Friday in the journal Science, means data can be processed according to the counterintuitive rules of quantum physics that allow individual subatomic particles to be in several places at the same time. 上周五发表在《科学》(Science)杂志上的这个重大突破意味着,可以根据量子物 理的反直觉规则处理数据。量子物理的反直觉规则指的是单个亚原子粒子可以同时出现在多个地方。
This property will enable quantum computers to process information in quantities and at speeds far beyond conventional supercomputers. But formidable technical barriers must be ­overcome before quantum ­computing becomes practical. 这种性能将使得量子计算机处理信息的数量和速度远超过传统的超级电脑。但是在量子计算 变得实际可行之前,必须克服巨大的技术障碍。
The team, from Bristol University in the UK, Tohuku University in Japan, Weizmann Institute in Israel and Twente University in the Netherlands, say they have overcome an important barrier, by making a quantum chip that can work at ordinary temperatures and pressures, rather than the extreme conditions required by other approaches. 来自英国布里斯特尔大学(Bristol University)、日本东北大学(Tohuku University)、以色列魏兹曼研究所(Weizmann Institute)和荷兰屯特大学(Twente University)的研究团队表示,他们已经制造出能够在普通温度和压力下(而不是其它方法要求的极端条件)工作的量子芯片,从而解决了一个重大障 碍。

译者/君悦

Norway will become the first country in the world to switch off FM radio

Others may soon be following its example.
After more than 60 years, Norway will go fully digital.
WASHINGTONPOST.COM|作者:ADAM TAYLOR

FM radio broadcasting was invented in the United States in 1933. After a slow start, it became wildly popular all around the world, largely because the frequency modulation technology used offered better sound quality than the existing amplitude modulation (AM) transmissions.
But the era of FM radio may be coming to an end. After more than 60 years of using the system, Norway is set to become the first country in the world to turn off its FM radio network — and others may soon be following its example.
Reuters reports that the shutdown will begin next week, with the northern town of Bodoe switching off its local network on Wednesday. By the end of the year, all FM broadcasts in Norway will have ended, replaced by Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) transmissions that generally offer better sound quality...

The Vertical Farm:Growing crops in the city, without soil or natural light.

The concept of vertical farming started in Professor Dickson Despommier's Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) classroom. Now, it could change the future of food -- all without using soil or natural light.
Read more in The New Yorker.
Growing crops in the city, without soil or natural light.
NEWYORKER.COM|由 IAN FRAZIER 上傳