ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

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• In search of . . . time travelers
• Simple, cheap way to increase solar cell efficiency
• Supercomputers join search for 'cheapium': Brute force computing used to find new materials
• The entropy of nations: Global energy inequality lessens, but for how long?
• Electronic tongues measure grape ripeness
• Another step towards understanding the quantum behavior of cold atoms

In search of . . . time travelers Posted: 03 Jan 2014 05:51 PM PST Scientists couldn't find any visitors from another century, but they had a very interesting time trying. They selected search terms relating to two recent phenomena, Pope Francis and Comet ISON, and began looking for references to them before they were known to exist. Their work was exhaustive: they used a variety of search engines, such as Google and Bing, and combed through Facebook and Twitter. In the case of Comet ISON, there were no mentions before it burst on the scene in September 2012. They discovered only one blog post referencing a Pope Francis before Jorge Mario Bergoglio was elected head of the Catholic Church on March 16, but it seemed more accidental that prescient.

Simple, cheap way to increase solar cell efficiency Posted: 03 Jan 2014 05:45 PM PST Researchers have found an easy way to modify the molecular structure of a polymer commonly used in solar cells. Their modification can increase solar cell efficiency by more than 30 percent.

Supercomputers join search for 'cheapium': Brute force computing used to find new materials Posted: 03 Jan 2014 05:44 PM PST Researchers use brute force supercomputing to identify dozens of platinum-group alloys that were previously unknown to science but could prove beneficial in a wide range of applications.

The entropy of nations: Global energy inequality lessens, but for how long? Posted: 03 Jan 2014 05:44 PM PST Inequality in the way nations consume energy has been lessening in recent years. An underlying thermodynamic process seems to be at work.

Electronic tongues measure grape ripeness Posted: 03 Jan 2014 09:13 AM PST Electronic tongues can become an ally of grape growers as they offer detailed information on the degree of grape maturity and this could improve competitiveness.

Another step towards understanding the quantum behavior of cold atoms Posted: 03 Jan 2014 05:52 AM PST Physicists have explored, on a theoretical level, some quantum effects that take place in atoms at a very low temperature. Firstly, he has discovered that boson-type atoms and fermion-type ones can be mixed in a specific way. So he has made the necessary conditions for carrying out these experiments available to experimental physicists. Secondly, he has deduced how fermions would influence bosons in this case.

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