Futurity.org » Georgia Institute of Technology

Nanopowders help sniff out nuclear attacks

John Toon-Georgia Tech — Tue, 08 May 2012 15:42:34 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — A new prototype combines rare-earth elements and other materials at the nanoscale to improve radiation detection in the field.

The technology is designed to enhance the radiation-detection devices used at ports, border crossings, airports, and elsewhere.

In the tropics, stalagmites tell climate story

Kimm Fesenmaier-Caltech — Fri, 04 May 2012 18:02:27 +0000

CALTECH (US) — Researchers are using stalagmites to reconstruct a history of the climate in the tropics throughout the late Pleistocene era.

Many existing historical climate records are biased to the high latitudes—coming from polar ice cores and North Atlantic deep ocean sediments. But a main driver of climate variability today is El Niño, which is a completely tropical phenomenon.

In parasite battles, weakness is a boost

Abby Vogel Robinson-Georgia Tech — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 15:01:52 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — When battling an epidemic of a deadly parasite, less resistance can sometimes be better than more, a new study suggests.

A freshwater zooplankton species known as Daphnia dentifera endures periodic epidemics of a virulent yeast parasite that can infect more than 60 percent of the Daphnia population. During these epidemics, the Daphnia population evolves quickly, balancing infection resistance and reproduction.

A new study led by Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) researchers reveals that the number of vertebrate predators in the water and the amount of food available for Daphnia to eat influence the size of the epidemics and how these “water fleas” evolve during epidemics to survive.

‘Blue’ compound stops brain tumor spread

Abby Vogel Robinson-Georgia Tech — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 17:05:40 +0000

GEORGIA TECH / EMORY (US) — A new treatment approach appears to halt the spread of cancer cells into normal brain tissue in animal models.

Researchers treated animals possessing an invasive tumor with a vesicle carrying a molecule called imipramine blue, followed by conventional doxorubicin chemotherapy.

Nuclear clock progress keeps on ticking

Josh Toon-Georgia Tech — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:02:45 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — Scientists report advances toward a clock accurate to within a tenth of a second over 14 billion years—the age of the universe.

Published in the journal Physical Review Letters, the research provides the blueprint for a nuclear clock that would get its extreme accuracy from the nucleus of a single thorium ion.

After a rest, Greek volcano gathers magma

Jason Maderer-Georgia Tech — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 13:20:05 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — After more than 60 years of inactivity, the magma chamber of a Greek volcano is filling up again.

A picturesque island in the Aegean Sea, Santorini is a tourist magnet, famous for its breathtaking, cliff side views and sunsets. Until now, the volcanic island has been relatively calm since its last eruption in 1950.

The Santorini caldera is awake again and rapidly deforming at levels never seen before.

Listen to Japan’s quake: Seismic waves as audio

Jason Maderer-Georgia Tech — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 16:49:19 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — Last year’s 9.0-magnitude 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan, the fourth largest since 1900, is the best-recorded earthquake of all-time.

Thousands of seismometers in the region recorded it. Japan’s willingness to share their measurements with the rest of the world is allowing scientists to report findings in unique ways.

With eye to the future, engineers map Japan’s tsunami

Liz Klipp-Georgia Tech — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 15:31:09 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — Using eyewitness video and terrestrial laser scanners from atop the highest buildings, researchers are mapping the 2011 Tohoku tsunami.

Despite an extraordinary level of preparedness by the Japanese, the tsunami caused more than 90 percent of the almost 20,000 fatalities last March.

Drop in sea ice to blame for snowy winters?

Abby Vogel Robinson-Georgia Tech — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 16:09:13 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — There’s new evidence connecting melting ice in the Arctic and widespread cold outbreaks in the Northern Hemisphere.

The findings from a study led by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology could be used to improve seasonal forecasting of snow and temperature anomalies across northern continents.

Tongue stud device uses iPod to drive wheelchair

Abby Vogel Robinson-Georgia Tech — Wed, 29 Feb 2012 14:57:33 +0000

GEORGIA TECH (US) — Engineers are developing a wireless device that enables people with spinal cord injuries to operate a computer and maneuver a wheelchair simply by moving their tongues.

The newest prototype of the Tongue Drive System allows users to wear an inconspicuous dental retainer embedded with sensors to control the system. The sensors track the location of a tiny magnet attached to the tongues of users.