Futurity.org » 3-D

Virtual skull: 3D peek at hominid brain

Carol Clark-Emory — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:33:03 +0000

EMORY (US) — A virtual endocast of a hominid skull that dates back nearly 2 million years raises questions about the evolution of the human brain.

The Australopithecus sediba skull is from the most complete early hominid fossils ever found. While some features of A. sediba were more human-like, most notably the precision-grip hand, the brain was more ape-like, says Emory University anthropologist Dietrich Stout.

Imaging hat trick: Faster, sharper, deeper

Deborah Williams-Hedges-Caltech — Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:53:31 +0000

CALTECH (US) — New technology could enhance in triplicate optical imaging of live biological samples by simultaneously improving resolution, penetration depth, and speed.

“Before our work, the state-of-the-art imaging techniques typically excelled in only one of three key parameters: resolution, depth, or speed,” says Scott Fraser, professor of biology and bioengineering at California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

Shrimp is high-def movies’ hottest star

A'ndrea Elyse Messer-Penn State — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 14:36:06 +0000

PENN STATE (US) — A shrimp with a sharp eye is giving researchers insight into how to improve CD, DVD, blu-ray, and holographic technology.

Peacock mantis shrimp are one of only a few animal species that can see circularly polarized light—like that used to create 3-D movies. In fact, some researchers believe the mantis shrimp’s eyes are better over the entire visual spectrum than any existing man-made waveplates.

Software maps brain’s nerve bundles

Richard Lewis-Brown — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 19:17:49 +0000

BROWN U. (US) — Combining visual clarity with a Web-based digital map interface, computer scientists have created 2-dimensional software to examine neural connections in the human brain.

The program could help scientists better understand myelinated axons, which are linked to a variety of pathologies, including autism.

Volcanic eruption re-created in 3-D

A'ndrea Elyse Messer-Penn State — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 20:30:24 +0000

PENN STATE (US) — A 3-D model of the Mount St. Helens volcanic eruption more than 30 years ago is expected to help seismologists map potential flows at blast-dangerous volcanoes worldwide.

“We took on the modeling of enormously complicated pyroclastic density currents, notably the classic, notorious May 1980 lateral blast that destroyed 500 square kilometers of forested terrain at Mount St. Helens,” says Barry Voight, professor emeritus of geology and geological engineering at Penn State.

How virtual acts change attitudes

Adam Gorlick-Stanford — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 19:02:29 +0000

STANFORD (US) — A virtual reality environment can literally change behavior in the real world, according to a new study.

People who were told to “cut down” a sequoia redwood in a 3-D forest were less likely to waste paper later, says Stanford University graduate student Sun Joo Ahn, whose doctoral dissertation outlines the findings. “We found that virtual reality can change how people behave.”

Probe goes below skin to flag lesions

Alan Blank-Rochester — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 12:30:19 +0000

U. ROCHESTER (US) — A new optical technology that takes high-resolution images under the skin’s surface may eliminate surgery to detect if lesions are benign or cancerous.

Instead, the tip of a roughly one-foot-long cylindrical probe is placed in contact with the tissue, and within seconds a clear, high-resolution, 3-D image of what lies below the surface emerges.

Atomic answer to why teeth are tough

Megan Fellman-Northwestern — Mon, 17 Jan 2011 01:48:09 +0000

NORTHWESTERN (US) — For the first time researchers have produced a 3-D map of the location and identity of millions of individual atoms in teeth, searching for clues to what makes them so strong.

The team didn’t map just any teeth. They analyzed teeth from a chiton, a sea mollusk that can literally chew rock. Chitons continually makes new rows of teeth—one a day—to replace mature but worn teeth; in conveyor-belt fashion, the older teeth move down the creature’s tongue-like radula toward the mouth where it feeds.

3-D steps up to decode mobility

Susan Young-Stanford — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 17:25:04 +0000

STANFORD (US) — Researchers are using computer-generated 3-D simulations of how humans move to improve the lives of people with limited mobility.

A movement disorder can have many origins, such as a birth defect, spinal cord injury, or stroke. Rehabilitation scientists facilitate treatment of mobility disorders by studying the bodily cause of physical impairments and providing a scientific basis for therapies that can improve function.

3-D images hint to Earth’s big split

Louis Bergeron-Stanford — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 22:34:24 +0000

STANFORD (US) — A new method of taking very detailed 3-D images of minute samples of material under extreme pressures is helping tell the story of the biggest transformation Earth has ever undergone.

Researchers are scrutinizing how minute amounts of iron and silicate minerals interact at ultra-high pressures and temperatures to learn more about the separation of Earth’s rocky mantle from its iron-rich core about 4.5 billion years ago.